Widespread frustration, dissatisfaction hamper progress for chronic pain sufferers, shows study

New study finds frustration and misunderstanding hamper progress for people living with severe pain

Health charity Pain Concern has revealed how widespread frustration and dissatisfaction is stopping people in severe pain getting the support they need from their GP. Pain Concern’s research shows how simple things like short consultation times and long waiting lists for pain management services combine with problems of communication to hamper good self-management of persistent pain – a condition which affects 1 in 5 of the UK population.

Most people with pain felt they had little time to express themselves during GP consultations and that they were rarely listened to. And it’s not only people in pain who are frustrated – Sheffield GP Ollie Hart outlines the problems with a medical approach that tries to fix problems that can’t be fixed. Instead, Hart explains, we need to transform the way doctors deal with patients so they can guide people on the challenging journey towards rebuilding lives blighted by pain.

Heather Wallace of Pain Concern said:

We’ve known for a long time that self-management can help people to control their pain when other options are limited but there is a real lack of understanding of how to apply self-management on both sides of the consulting room. We found communication problems stopped doctors introducing the idea of self-management at an early stage on the lengthy patient journey towards diagnosis and treatment and there are also challenges for people with pain in getting used to the idea of taking an active role in their treatment.

With chronic pain now at record levels in the UK, Pain Concern is urging people affected by the condition to help themselves by learning more about managing pain and using that knowledge to help themselves. Pain Concern believes it can be done and will be looking into why self-management isn’t working in a special radio broadcast featuring experts and real people who have learned how to get their pain under control and get their lives back on track.

Why self-management isn’t working will be broadcast on the Airing Pain radio show on Tuesday 13^th October 2015 at 8pm on www.ableradio.com. The show features in-depth interviews with clinical experts as well as first-hand accounts from people living with daily pain.

Source: http://painconcern.org.uk/