Evaluating a Mind-Body Approach for Military Veterans with Chronic Pain

The primary goal of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of an eight-week Mind-Body Pain Management group at a VA Health Care System in the Midwest. The Mind-Body Pain Management group is offered to Veterans who exhibit symptoms of chronic physical pain. Effectiveness was determined by examining Veterans’ pretest, posttest, and follow-up responses to the Quality of Life Inventory (QOLI), Pain Rating Scale, and the VA Pain Outcomes Questionnaire (VA-POQ). A secondary objective of this study was to investigate potential relationships between Veterans’ demographic information (gender, age, combat history, and service-connected disability status), as well as access to prescription narcotic pain medication with regard to the effectiveness of the Mind-Body Pain Management program. This study employed a quantitative design in the form of secondary analysis of available data. The study found no statistically significant results with regard to overall scores from the survey tools. Upon completion of the Mind-Body Pain Management group, participants reported improvement in QOLI subscales of Self-esteem and Goals & Values. Likewise, the VA-POQ provided subscales and found improvements in the areas of Mobility and Negative Affect. Areas that remained unchanged or noted a decline in improvement after intervention for the QOLI included the subscale Health. Respondents reported worse scores for VA-POQ subscales: Activities of Daily Living, Vitality, and Fear after completing the Mind-Body Pain Management group. Regarding demographic information, participants’ gender and service-connected disability status played a role in the effectiveness of the Mind-Body Pain Management program. This study will afford the VA Health Care System information regarding the degree to which the Mind-Body Pain Management group is effective and explore potential correlations among individual characteristics of participants with regard to the effectiveness of the program in order to make appropriate recommendations for the group