Pain management in hospitals: patients' satisfaction and related barriers.

BACKGROUND

Suboptimal pain control has been frequently reported in healthcare settings and documented to negatively impact patients' health. Patients' perception regarding pain management may influence their satisfaction regarding treatment.

OBJECTIVES

This study focuses on the assessment of patients' satisfaction regarding pain therapy and defining patient-related barriers for its implication.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted in two tertiary care hospitals from April till July 2017. A face-to face interview questionnaire was filled regarding pain scores and patients' attitudes regarding pain management. Both medical and post-surgical adult patients with all types of pain were eligible to participate. A descriptive analysis of patient satisfaction and perceptions regarding pain management was done.

RESULTS

Results from 183 participants with a mean age of 49 (SD=17.33) revealed that pain was their main reason for hospitalization (71.6% of the cases). Numeric pain scores were recorded only in 14.2% of the patient medical files. Pain intensity documentation by healthcare professionals was found in 41.5% of the cases, and 7.7% of the patients had to wait for more than 30 minutes before getting the pain medication. Around 85% of the patients were satisfied with their pain management. Patients' barriers to effective pain therapy were mainly fear of adverse effects, addiction, and additional costs (p<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Pain remains a prevalent problem that requires more efforts for improvement. Our study can effectively serve as a start for larger studies where barriers to pain management can be assessed as an independent variable affecting pain management practice.