WORKSHOP: Assessing and Managing Pain Across the Lifespan: A Multimodal and Multidisciplinary Approach

Description/Overview: Despite significant advances in knowledge of the subject, pain still remains significantly undertreated or mistreated. Reasons for such deficits range from misconceptions and lack of specific knowledge to structural as well as organizational shortcomings. Pain assessment and pain management in patients in hospitals, out-patient facilities and the community constitute a particular challenge and will be the focus of this session, which is designed to facilitate an interactive exchange between participants and presenters. The purpose of the workshop is to explore pain assessment and management in patients from different perspectives and to provide attendees with the latest research findings on the topic. The program will include a comparative introduction of various pain assessment tools for the patients across the life span. Pain-related issues to be considered during the actual physical examination of patients will be highlighted will be included. Communication constitutes an important facet in the overall management of pain. How it takes place, what aspects are of particular importance and what it means for possible treatment approaches will be the a focus of the presentation. Finally, the question as to why adequate pain management for many patients still remains a problem will be explored. For this, data drawn from a lighthouse project that is designed to analyze and optimize the multidisciplinary pain management in 14 facilities including 475 patients in the model city of Münster, Germany will be presented. From beginning with a basis in pain pathophysiology, the scope of the presentation will include pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment as well as specific barriers to the implementation of adequate pain management as well as, the presumed linkage between pain, dementia and agitated behavior in the elderly.