Page Contents
Right Choice Index
What is pain?
Common myths
Advice
Be assertive
Pain services
Site Contents
Patients & visitors
Medical professionals
Yale-New Haven
Children's Hospital
Yale-New Haven
Psychiatric Hospital
General information
Calendar
Online resource
Press information
Phone Numbers
Directory assistance
(203) 688-4242
Patient Information
(203) 688-4177
Adult emergency
(203) 688-2222
Children's emergency
(203) 688-3333
Admitting
(203) 688-2221
Children's admitting
(203) 688-3331
Psychiatric admitting
(203) 688-9907
Mailing address:
Yale-New Haven Hospital
20 York Street
New Haven, CT 06510-3202
Managing Pain in the Hospital:
What You Should Know
What is pain?
Pain is not just "all in your head"—it is an "all too real" physiological phenomenon, although the specifics vary depending on whether it is caused by damage to nerves, as in shingles and diabetes; by inflammation, as in arthritis; by infection; or by damage to tissue, as in cancer, surgery or broken bones.
Most pain caused by disease, injury or surgery can be greatly relieved or eased with proper pain management. When pain is managed well, patients can return more quickly to the things they enjoyed before their illness or surgery. If early acute pain is well controlled, the risk of developing chronic debilitating pain may be decreased.
Unfortunately, many patients assume they have no choice but to tolerate the pain caused by their medical problems. Patients may even avoid effective pain relief because of mistaken beliefs about pain control and concerns about addiction.
Common myths about pain
Myth #1: Pain is normal. Many
patients are hesitant to report their pain to their doctors and nurses
because they think pain is normal and they should just tough it out. Others
believe that admitting to having pain is a sign of personal weakness.
Fact: Extreme pain is not normal
and may be largely or completely relieved with medication. Pain is a common
medical problem that requires urgent attention, so do not be embarrassed
or afraid to talk about it.
Myth #2: Taking medication
for the treatment of pain leads to addiction. Some patients do
not want to take pain medicines because of fears of addiction.
Fact: When properly prescribed
and taken as directed, addiction to medicines is rare.
Myth #3: Pain medications
cause side effects that cannot be managed. Often concerns about
side effects such as sleepiness, mental dullness, lightheadedness, constipation
and nausea cause patients to avoid pain medications.
Fact: Many side effects of pain
medications improve with time. Other side effects can be managed.
Myth #4: Pain medications
are always given by an injection. If patients believe this myth
and are afraid of shots, they may not ask for medication to relieve pain.
Fact: Injections are seldom
used with children anymore and increasingly less often with adults. Most
pain medicine is taken orally. In some cases, such as right after surgery,
pain medication is given through an intravenous catheter (IV). Often IV
pain medications are given through a pump that is controlled by the patient
(called patient-controlled anesthesia or PCA).
Advice from Yale-New Haven physicians and nurses
- Work closely with your doctors and nurses to design the best pain management plan:
- If possible, make sure you tell your nurses and doctors ahead of time about your pain management concerns, needs and wishes.
- Anxiety also increases perceptions of pain, making it feel worse. Treating anxiety is often as important as treating pain. Discuss your anxiety with your caregivers.
- If you are going to have surgery, ask your surgeon about his/her plans to control pain after surgery. Ask what medications you will receive before the operation to minimize pain later, and what will be available for pain relief afterwards.
- Always tell your nurse if you are allergic to medications, or have concerns or questions about your medications.
- Describe what your pain feels like. Use specific words like sharp, stabbing, dull, aching, burning, tingling, throbbing, deep, pressing, etc.
- Describe what makes your pain better or worse. Is the pain always there or does it go away sometimes? Does the pain get worse when you move in certain ways?
- Tell your nurse or doctor when the pain medication is not working. Other nonmedical approaches have been shown to be helpful for some patients including deep breathing, stretching, relaxation techniques and ice massage.
It's OK to be assertive
Patients should talk with their physicians and nurses about fears or expectations of pain management before, during and after their medical treatment. If you are a patient in a hospital or other facility and you are in pain, speak up. Ask a doctor or nurse for help. If you do not get help right away, ask again. If you still do not get help, ask to speak to the patient advocate or representative. You have the right to effective pain care without delay.
If you are particularly concerned about pain management, your choice of hospitals is important. Be sure to select a hospital or ask your doctor to send you to a hospital that has a pain management service.
Yale-New Haven Hospital pain services
- Yale-New Haven Hospital has a dedicated post-surgery pain service that can respond to adult patients with special pain management needs.
- The Pediatric Pain Management Service at Yale-New Haven Children's Hospital can address pain-related issues in both inpatients and outpatients.
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Call (203) 688-2000 or toll free (888) 700-6543 to speak with a health information coordinator or request an appointment. You can also get physician information or request an appointment on this web site. |
Last revised: March 8, 2004 (cfs)
