A Comparison of Nurse, Pharmacist, and Physician Knowledge, Attitude, and Barriers to Pain Management

Pain control is managed by health care professionals every working day. The literature suggests that nurses, pharmacists, and physicians have different levels of knowledge, attitudes, and perceived barriers toward pain management. The purpose of this study was to compare the knowledge, skills, and attitudes of three types of health care professionals toward pain management. A sample of one hundred and five of four hundred and twenty eight possible candidates responded to a questionnaire. Results demonstrated that pharmacists had the best understanding of pain management principles, attitudes and the lowest level of barriers to effective pain management. Nurses had the lowest level of knowledge regarding pain management. Physicians demonstrated negative attitudes and high level of barriers to effective pain management