• Diane Glowacki.
• Diane Glowacki is a clinical nurse specialist at Mercy Hospital of Buffalo, Buffalo, New York. She has held nursing leadership roles in project management, program development, process changes in best practice, and evidence-based clinical nursing practice. She led the development of a designated New York State stroke center and has had roles in stroke coordination. She leads the pain management team and assists in developing strategies to improve patients' experience and satisfaction. dglowack@chsbuffalo.org.
• Crit Care Nurse. 2015 Jun 1; 35 (3): 33-41; quiz 43.

AbstractAdequate pain management is a compelling and universal requirement in health care. Despite considerable advancements, the adverse physiological and psychological implications of unmanaged pain remain substantially unresolved. Ineffective pain management can lead to a marked decrease in desirable clinical and psychological outcomes and patients' overall quality of life. Effective management of acute pain results in improved patient outcomes and increased patient satisfaction. Although research and advanced treatments in improved practice protocols have documented progressive improvements in management of acute and postoperative pain, little awareness of the effectiveness of best practices persists. Improved interventions can enhance patients' attitudes to and perceptions of pain. What a patient believes and understands about pain is critical in influencing the patient's reaction to the pain therapy provided. Use of interdisciplinary pain teams can lead to improvements in patients' pain management, pain education, outcomes, and satisfaction. ©2015 American Association of Critical-Care Nurses.

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