Implementation of a patient-controlled analgesia program under the direction of the nursing department.

New methods of postoperative pain control offer alternatives to traditional intramuscular injections of narcotic. One such method is patient-controlled analgesia (PCA), in which patients self-administer predetermined, controlled doses of intravenous narcotic "on demand." The PACU is a desirable unit in which to initiate PCA since pain is often acute in the immediate postanesthesia period. Implementing and maintaining a PCA program involves planning and education for patients and hospital staff. PCA is often initiated and controlled by the anesthesia department in large institutions. However, at The Medical Center of Central Massachusetts-Memorial, the program was successfully implemented under the direction of the Nursing Department.