A new campaign aiming to shine a light on those affected by pain and living in care homes, tells the story of 90-year-old John whose life has transformed since his joint pain has been assessed effectively and its management improved.
John* lives full-time in a Staffordshire care home. He has dementia, and like many others living with dementia, also suffers from osteoarthritis-related pain.
Due to his cognitive limitations, John is unable to self-report his pain, and without appropriate treatment, can become withdrawn from his regular activities.
Since the care home introduced a digital pain assessment tool, John’s care staff have been able to accurately identify when he is in discomfort and to what degree, even if he doesn’t tell them, so they can proactively manage and get ahead of his pain, and ensure he continues to get enjoyment from his daily activities.
Importantly for John and his quality of life, he has been able to return to his favourite hobby of gardening now that his carers better understand his pain and are able to manage his comfort better.
The tool used by John’s care home is PainChek®– a point-of-care pain assessment solution that enables care teams to quickly identify when someone is in pain, regardless of whether or not they can self-report, and quantify the severity of that pain to guide appropriate pain relief and treatment. PainChek’s smartphone-based app uses the device’s camera and AI to identify micro-facial expressions indicative of pain.
John’s story is just one of several showcased in PainChek’s new campaign: ‘Managing Pain, Improving Lives’, as its CEO and Managing Director, Philip Daffas explains: “Pain is a deeply personal and multifaceted experience, and affects people in different ways. Across all care settings, there are multiple people involved in the process of managing a person’s pain.
“The ‘Managing Pain, Improving Lives’ campaign shines a light on all those affected by pain, whether it be the individual themselves, their loved ones, or their caregivers.
“By listening to the voices of these people, we can highlight the need for a more holistic approach to pain management,” he says, “and foster an environment where pain is better understood, better identified, and ultimately, better managed.”
The campaign is the latest in PainChek’s global initiatives to increase awareness of how effective pain management can positively impact people’s care, quality of life and wellbeing, and empower the care sector and healthcare professionals to deliver the highest level of care to those in need.
With more than two million pain assessments completed globally using PainChek®, clinicians are convinced of the benefits of digital pain assessment.
Care professional Francesca Glamorgan explains: “The majority of our residents have some form of pain – whether it’s chronic and being managed, or acute pain. Pain assessment using PainChek® is just something we do all day, every day. Every time we interact with someone, we check for the signs of pain: if they’ve stopped eating, if they’ve stopped sleeping, if they’re more agitated than usual. It truly influences everything.”
Having experienced first-hand the significant impact pain can have on a person’s quality of life, supporting residents to be comfortable and pain-free is crucial for Francesca: “There’s nothing worse than seeing someone in pain and distressed,” she says. “I’ve experienced that both professionally and personally with my dad when he was palliating with liver cancer.
“Just yesterday I had a family with me whose loved one is in palliative care. And the question we always ask them is: what is most important for the resident, but also for the family? Every time, they just want their loved one to be pain-free.”
Pain assessment not only has important implications for a resident’s treatment outcomes and quality of life, but also for giving family members much-needed peace of mind and assurance that their loved ones are being cared for appropriately.
Registered nurse Alvin Carlos has worked in the care industry for over a decade. He says: “About 90-95% of our residents experience pain. Some of them don’t really complain about it, but are in fact experiencing pain already. It could be that they don’t want to show they are in pain, or it could be masked by pain relief medication. Some of them are physically and cognitively declining and may not be able to tell us about their pain level.”
Accurate pain assessment not only has important implications for aged care residents’ treatment outcomes and quality of life, but also for giving their loved ones peace of mind.
Registered nurse Parbati Pun also understands the significance of ongoing pain assessment and management: “Pain not only has a significant impact on residents, but also their loved ones and carers,” she explains. “If a resident is in pain, then they are in distress, and that is understandably upsetting for their loved ones and carers to see as well. It’s important to keep family members and loved ones updated on the resident’s ongoing care plan – what has changed in terms of pain over the last few months, if there’s any new pain or pain management.”
The majority of residents in the facilities overseen by nurse practitioner and head of clinical services, Larissa McIntyre, are living with dementia or life-limiting illnesses, and for many, this means dealing with chronic pain. Although completely eliminating pain for these residents may not always be possible, ensuring comfort and dignity is paramount.
“99.5% of our residents will die either with us or in a hospital, so end-of-life care is really, really important,” Larissa says. “We need to get it right the first time, because we don’t get a second chance. Providing that excellence in care as people are dying and supporting their families is critical.”
To read more real stories and learn how effective pain management has enhanced the quality of life of individuals across the world, visit: https://www.painchek.com/improving-lives/
For further information, visit: https://painchek.com/uk/
*Name changed to protect identity