• Bernadette Brady, Irena Veljanova, and Lucinda Chipchase.
• School of Science and Health, Western Sydney University, Sydney, Australia.
• Pain Med. 2019 Mar 1; 20 (3): 434-445.

ObjectiveThis study highlights the burden of chronic non-cancer-related pain from the perspectives of three culturally and linguistically diverse communities, using an intersectionality analysis. Specifically, we identify how multiple social identities intersect to account for the unequal distribution of the burden of chronic pain.Design And MethodsSix focus groups of 41 culturally and linguistically diverse participants (Mandaean, Assyrian, and Vietnamese) living with chronic noncancer pain were conducted in South-West Sydney, Australia, between February and July 2015. Data were analyzed using inductive and intersectional methodology.ResultsThe interaction between a patient with chronic pain from a culturally and linguistically diverse background and the health system is influenced by four identified social identities that interact to create relative positions of disadvantage for the patient within the health system and with health care providers. The social identities identified were ethnoculture, social class, migration status, and gender.ConclusionsHealth care providers must consider how the intersectionality of social identities related to ethnoculture, social class, migration status, and gender can factor into the creation and maintenance of chronic pain disparities. A greater, more thoughtful incorporation of intersectionality in chronic pain research and clinical practice will ensure that pain management approaches are designed and applied in a way that reflects the social context of affected communities and individuals from those communities.© 2018 American Academy of Pain Medicine. All rights reserved. For permissions, please e-mail: journals.permissions@oup.com.

18 keywords...

hide…