Attitudes about cancer pain: a survey of 727 health care professionals in West Virginia.

To assess the attitudes of health care professionals in West Virginia about cancer pain, we utilized an 11-item questionnaire developed by DeWiessman and T.L. Dahl. We administered this questionnaire to 727 health care professionals and chi-square tests were used to assess correlations between attitudes on cancer pain and demographic characteristics (e.g. age, family history of cancer, sex, etc.). The majority of respondents believed that greater than 60% of cancer patients experience pain and that most patients were undermedicated with respect to pain. Age and having a family member with cancer were the major factors affecting attitudes. Respondents less than 46 years old compared to those 46 or older, were more likely to believe that most cancer patients were undermedicated; that addiction to narcotics is rare; and that the patient is the best judge of cancer pain intensity. Respondents with a family member with cancer were less likely to be concerned about addiction if a family member is given morphine. We conclude that educational efforts should be directed at altering attitudes regarding cancer pain in individuals age 46 years or older and those without a family history of cancer.