• Timothy H Wideman, Alice Boom, Jennifer Dell'Elce, Kate Bergeron, Janick Fugère, Xiangying Lu, Geoff Bostick, and Heather C Lambert.
• School of Physical and Occupational Therapy, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in Rehabilitation of Greater Montreal, Montreal, QC, Canada.
• Pain Res Manag. 2016 Jan 1; 2016: 9570581.

AbstractChronic pain negatively impacts health, well-being, and social participation. Effective rehabilitation often hinges on long-term changes in pain-related perceptions and behaviors. However, there are important gaps in understanding how patients perceive these changes. The present pilot study addresses this gap by using qualitative and quantitative methodologies to explore how patients perceive and experience changes in function, participation, and pain-related factors following a chronic pain rehabilitation program. A mixed-method design was used in which the core method was qualitative. Descriptive quantitative data was used to further characterize the sample. Semistructured interviews were conducted 1-6 months following treatment completion. Questionnaires were administered before and after treatment and at follow-up. Interview data was analyzed thematically. Participants' individual descriptive data was compared to established cut-scores and criteria for change. A major theme of personal growth emerged in the qualitative analysis. Participants also discussed the factors that facilitated personal growth and the ongoing challenges to this growth. The quantitative data revealed limited improvement on measures of pain, disability, catastrophizing, and depression. These findings suggest that, despite limited improvement on treatment-related questionnaires, patients can experience an important and enduring sense of personal growth. Clinical and theoretical implications are discussed.

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