Pain management nursing : official journal of the American Society of Pain Management Nurses
-
The relationship between pain and mortality risk has not been well established. ⋯ The present study suggested that inpatients admitted with a chief complaint of pain might have a significantly lower risk of in-hospital mortality compared with those admitted without a chief complaint of pain.
-
Despite the long-term consequences of poorly controlled postoperative pain, inadequate pain control remains a problem. ⋯ The availability of multimodal analgesia was high following the introduction of electronic prescribing. However, gaps remain in the administration of both fixed and 'as needed' analgesics for postoperative patients. Findings suggested that allowing patients to self-administer analgesia may increase compliance with fixed schedule prescriptions.
-
Attention to factors that may affect patients' ability to experience enhanced recovery after surgery is essential in planning for postoperative care. ⋯ "Traditional" predictors had little effect on patients' postoperative physical recovery, while associations with common postoperative symptoms were shown. Further research is needed to explore additional variables affecting early physical recovery and to understand how soon patients are physically ready to return home.
-
To investigate registered nurses' (RNs') and physicians' knowledge, attitudes, and experiences regarding assessing and managing pain in infants at seven level III neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in Sweden. ⋯ RNs in this study reported that their pain assessments did not lead to appropriate pain management interventions. They were thus discouraged from further pain assessments or advocating for ethical pain management. An interprofessional team effort is needed to effectively assess and manage pain in neonates.
-
This was a retrospective chart review of procedural pain assessments and interventions during arterial catheter insertion in an adult neurological intensive care unit where patients with impaired consciousness are common. Overall, pain assessment was well documented (100%) by Registered Nurses, but not specific to arterial line insertion. Nurse practitioners commonly placed arterial lines and used local analgesia in over 75% of the documented procedures. ⋯ The lack of procedural pain assessment in this vulnerable population indicates a need for increased pain management education for clinicians and further investigations to determine whether sufficient analgesia is provided to reduce procedural pain during arterial line insertion.