NURSING 1025 CHAPTER 41 - PAIN MANAGEMENT

NURSING 1025 CHAPTER 41 - PAIN MANAGEMENT● Effective pain management includes the use of pharmacological and nonpharmacological pain management therapies. Invasive therapies such as nerve ablation may be appropriate for intractable cancer-related pain. ● Clients have a right to adequate assessment and management of pain. Nurses are accountable for the assessment of pain. The nurse’s role is that of an advocate and educator for effective pain management. ● Nurses have a priority responsibility for the continual assessment of the client’s pain level and to provide individualized interventions. They should assess the effectiveness of the interventions 30 to 60 min after implementation. ● Assessment challenges may occur with clients who are cognitively impaired or on a ventilator. ● Undertreatment of pain is a serious health care problem. Consequences of undertreatment of pain include physiological and psychological components. ◯ Acute/chronic pain can cause anxiety, fear, and depression. ◯ Poorly managed acute pain may lead to chronic pain syndrome. Physiology of Pain ● Transduction is the conversion of painful stimuli to an electrical impulse through peripheral nerve fibers (nociceptors). ● Transmission occurs as the electrical impulse travels along the nerve fibers and is regulated by neurotransmitters. ● The pain threshold is the point at which a person feels pain. ● Pain tolerance is the amount of pain a person is willing to bear