Abstract This research paper attempts to evaluate whether patients suffering from chronicpain are more likely to be misdiagnosed as suffering from depression because their condition and disease is 'invisible' to physicians. More specifically the paper attempts to determine if there is a relationship between depression and chronicpain, and if so what the nature of that relationship is.
Introduction
Preliminary Literature Review
Conclusions
From the Paper "There is a large body of evidence that suggests that patients suffering from chronic pain also suffer from psychological illnesses such as anxiety or depression (Hendler, 2003; Nelson & Novy, 1997). The question to be explored is whether or not the pain experienced results from the psychological illness (depression) or the depression results from the chronic pain. Common practice in the medical community up until this point in time has been to assume that chronic pain or the perception of pain results more from psychological factors such as depression, rather than to view depression as resulting from the inadequate treatment of chronic pain symptoms."
Abstract The paper discusses a program that is targeted at older adults who suffer from chronicpain, utilizing a combination of therapies that are holistic and address conditions that affect the mind, body and emotions. The paper explains that chronicpain must include issues of loss and stress and this can only be achieved through the use of complementary and alternative interventions. The paper concludes that while there are restrictions on the implementation of this program, its main value is that it incorporates patients who are otherwise excluded, such as those with dementia.
Outline:
Introduction
The Necessity of the Program
The Elements of the Program
Health Teaching
Interventions and Individual Differences
Outcomes of the Program
Conclusion
From the Paper "A complex continuing care program is intended to provide care for older patients who experience complex medical conditions in a non-acute hospital setting. Complex medical conditions include pain and symptom management, recovery from stroke, along with other chronic medical conditions which impact on patients' physical, emotional, social and spiritual well-being. The program was developed because pain among the elderly is often not adequately treated. When pain in older adults is not effectively managed, there are serious impacts on their physical and psychological functioning as well as on their quality of life (Herr, 2002)."
Abstract Specifically the paper shows the connection between chronicpain and depression. It defines these terms and examines how it affects the person and the ones around them. The paper addresses treatment options and discusses ways to break the cycle.
From the Paper "What causes depression? For thousands of years, depression was thought to simply be a weakness of the mind, often called "melancholia. "Depression is caused, in part, by certain life goals which become unfeasible, but which a person cannot abandon, this resulting in reflection upon lost goals. To gradually abandon these goals and to work towards other goals is to overcome the depression" (Miletich, 1995, p. 11). Today, we know depression is a treatable disease, and often physicians and therapists treat it with a variety of anti-depressive drugs, gaining very positive results. However, there is another kind of depression that is much more difficult to treat, because it is linked to a physical ailment, chronic pain. "
Tags: disease, suicide, health, care, patient, treatment
An analysis of the notion of resistance in light of the way chronicpain sufferers use narrative and objectification to resist pain and how chronicpain in turns resists political economic pressures.
Abstract This paper uses Foucault's work on biopower and governmentality to analyse chronicpain as a resistance to power/knowledge formations that express themselves in terms of control over the body. It attempts to analyse chronicpain by using three different notions of resistance. It looks at how chronicpain causes a contraction of the social world especially in situations of biomedical practice when the moral decision "it's all in your head" can often be made by doctors. It examines how this process resists speech (and thus resocialisation) by analysing the dialectical tension this resistance has with the stress, rage and the impulse that drives us to unsettle or confound the fixed order of things. It then explores the resistance that people have to the pain that they feel followed by rage for order.
From the Paper "Chronic pain confounds many of the concepts and methods used for its analysis, in part because of the privileging of certain spheres of analysis. This is noticeable in a set of assumptions that are part of both biomedical and western philosophical theory. This set of assumptions assumes a divide between mind and body; it assumes that diseases are universal biological or pyschophysiological entities resulting from somatic lesions and dysfunctions. These can produce signs of symptoms, and one must decode the cultural elements of patients systems in terms of their underlying somatic referents. If the symptoms do not fit this mould, then one is denied illness in the biomedical model."
Abstract There has been a massive shift in thinking about chronicpain and pain management, from seeing pain as a secondary characteristic to the disease, to seeing pain as a primary problem. The writer explores the issue and the surrounding controversy. The paper looks at the ways in which financial cutbacks in home health care and hospice have led to fewer employees and a stronger reliance on pain medication.
From the Paper "In an article in the Columbian (Oregon leads quiet revolution, 1999), a graphic example of one of the ongoing problems in the management of chronic pain was illustrated in the story of a man who hurt his back in 1988. Although in chronic pain, his doctors hesitated to provide him with narcotics for long-term pain relief because of the fear of drug addiction. Despite the fact that things are changing, pain management in home health care and hospice has often been shaped more by politics than by scientific knowledge about the effects of pain and its management. Both doctors and patients still exhibit resistance to appropriate pain management, fearing addiction, acting from ignorance, or feeling that patients should simply be more stoic. In the following pages, the intention is to explore this issue in more detail."
Abstract The paper defines pain, illness and the process of sensitization. The paper discusses the use of acupuncture in treating chronicpain conditions. The paper relates how unlike conventional treatments using synthesized oral pills, tablets or syrups, acupuncture enlists the natural body forces and processes to produce the relief or control of pain. The paper points out acupuncture's effectiveness, virtual lack of side effects and its safety and so argues for its recognition as a legitimate pain control treatment mode.
Outline:
Introduction
Review of Method
Conclusion
From the Paper "Pain has been described as a jabbing, throbbing, burning or stinging sensation (Mayo Clinic Staff 2007). The uncomfortable experience is partly physical and partly influenced by psychological and cultural factors. Questions have remained as to what exactly happens when a part of the body or mind is affected and the time the person feels pain. Pain proceeds from a series of exchanges within the three major components of the nervous system, such as the peripheral nerves, the spinal cord and the brain. The peripheral nerves sense touch, pressure, vibration, cold and warmth."
Abstract In the paper, the writer examines the growing demand by patients suffering from chronicpain for pain management and relief treatments that will improve the quality of their lives. The writer contends that America's rapidly growing population of Seniors, coupled with increased longevity is the reason for this demand and examines some of the solutions that doctors are able to provide. The author then examines the growth of specialized care in pain management and the current system for subspecialty certification for physicians, before making his final conclusions and recommendations.
Outline:
Introduction
Specialized Pain Management Growth
Increased Opportunity For Care
Current Opportunity for Specialization in Pain Management/Proposed AA System
Conclusion
References
From the Paper "The current system for subspecialty certification for physicians, in pain medicine comes in the form of an annual exam offered by the ABPM. The organization certifies about 2200 physicians per year in this specialty through the successful completion of the exam, which has about an 80% pass rate. (ABPM, 2008, NP) It would be conducive to structure the AA system in a similar manner with the inclusion of preparatory post grad fellowship continuing education opportunities. Individual AA's who took the seminar style two semester prep classes, and who were signed off by a governing anesthesiologist or their work institution as working within this field successfully for greater than one year would be eligible to sit for the exam and would then be certified in the subspecialty of pain medicine if success was achieved on the exam. All preparation would also qualify the individual for continuing education credits, toward their general licensure and facility requirements. Some legislation for a broadening of services offered might also be needed to alter the current state of allowable practical functions of an AA. The development of such legislative changes would likely be welcomed, as cost reduction seems to be the rule of the day with regard to medical care and spending, and this would likely improve the availability and reduce the cost of procedures significantly."
Abstract This paper studies the nursing profession, focusing on the role of nurses in helping patients to cope with chronicpain. The paper begins with a detailed background about the developing of nursing, including the main theories of health care provision, which are the Caring Model and the Developmental Model. Next, the paper examines patient care in out-patient or family settings. A discussion about healing techniques includes non-traditional methods such as as aromatherapy and informal talk therapy. The paper then presents a 2000 case study of 52 persons with hypertension in four health care units in Erzurum, Turkey in 2000. The patients and their families were visited by nurses once a week for blood pressure measurement for three months. The paper concludes that the Caring Model improved the quality of life of the hypertensive patients who participated in the study by decreasing blood pressure and increasing the quality of life.
Outline:
I. Background
II. The Theory in the Out-Patient/Family Setting
III. Case Study
From the Paper "It has been commonly viewed that those who choose a nursing career do so out of a desire to care for the sick and the needy (Vance 2003). Caring was the central concept, which gave rise to several caring theories, the two most prominent being the Leininger's Theory of cultural care and Jean Watson's Theory of human caring. Watson stressed that caring is a science, which is characterized by a humanitarian and human science orientation to human caring processes, phenomena and experiences. A caring science deals with being-in-relation and a world view of unity and connectedness of all creation. This transpersonal caring recognizes that unity of life and the connections that weave from the individual to others, the community, the planet and the universe. Inquiries into the caring science are reflective, subjective and interpretative, besides being objective-empirical. They also include ontological, philosophical, ethical, historical inquiries and take the form of multiple epistemological approaches to inquiry, such as clinical and empirical."
Tags: health, care, home, medicine, pain, management, chronic, sufferer, Caring, Model
Abstract The paper discusses the types of pain that include chronicpain, acute pain and breakthrough pain. The paper looks at the methods to make an effective diagnosis of pain and provides an understanding of how pain occurs. The paper then explores alternative therapies for pain and focuses on massage therapy and deep breathing. The paper concludes that there is enough evidence that unconventional and alternative strategies for treatment can have beneficial effects.
Outline:
Introduction
Mechanism of Pain Kinds of Pain Alternative Therapies for Pain Management
Massage Therapy
Use of Massage Therapy
Deep Breathing
Conclusion
From the Paper "There is a journal that is dedicated to the subject of pain--Pain. Pain is an important aspect of life because it is the mechanism by which the body protects itself. The capacity to monitor the integrity of our bodies and to be made immediately aware of injury through the experience of pain is critical for our survival. Individuals who are born without this capacity frequently die at relatively young ages from injuries or illnesses that they never realized they had. There are different therapeutic modalities to treat pain. Of these, massage therapy or deep breathing are two. The International Association for the Study of Pain defines pain as "... an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience associated with actual or potential tissue damage."(Merskey, 1979) Margaret McCaffrey, a social scientist and registered nurse was quoted in cancer-pain.org as saying: "Pain is whatever the experiencing person says it is, and exists whenever he says it does." (McCaffrey, 1972)"
Tags: nerves, stress, cortisol, relaxation, wellbeing, immune, system
This paper is a formal academic analysis of research presented by M. Donovan and K. D. Laack, ?Individually reported effectiveness of therapy for chronicpain.? in Clinical Nursing Research, 7(4).
Abstract This paper is a formal critique of a research article reporting a project, in which back patients evaluated the effectiveness of previously received chronicpain treatment. The paper reported that the instruments used in the research were the Effectiveness of Treatments portion of the Patient Pain Questionnaire, the Wisconsin Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) and other questions appraising depression, therapy satisfactions and demographic variables. The author felt that the study was communicated clearly and effectively in this article, but the inclusion of statistical information about patient demographics and other patient variables would strengthen the article.
Table of Contents
Introduction
Literature Review
Conceptual/Theoretical Framework
Hypothesis/Research Question
Operational Definitions
Population and Sample
Research Design
Data Collection Methods
From the Paper "The study population consists of all chronic pain sufferers. The study includes a non-probability, convenience sample consisting of 163 patients. Limitations of this sample include its lack of representation of and generalizability to the population since it is biased toward or consisted only of subjects at least 18 years of age, primarily females (72%), and those living in the Northwest region of the United States. There is no evidence regarding the protection of subjects' rights."
Tags: questionnaire, demographics, concept, hypothesis, population
Abstract This paper discusses pain management, particularly in sickle cell disease. The paper describes the way that effective pain management can not only reduce physical discomfort, but also promote quality of life. The paper then describes the challenges of managing pain in sickle cell diseases, where the pain is chronic, however also has acute episodes.
From the Paper "Lived Experience of Sickle Cell Disease and Health Promotion Introduction Effective pain management not only reduces physical discomfort but also promotes quality of life. Nurses have the ethical and professional duty of managing pain and enhancing quality of life for their patients. However, with sickle cell disease, since chronic pain is combined with episodes of acute pain, pain management becomes a real challenge (Tanyi, 2003). The research question underlying this literature review is: how can a patient's pain be adequately managed and their quality of life improved during a hospital stay? The phenomenon of interest in this paper is pain management and how it is the key for improving quality of life."
Abstract This research paper looks at how knowledge of the behavioral and emotional responses of patients with chronic illness are an important part of their treatment, remission, and/or acceptance of their illness. The paper points out that physicians often look only at the physical aspects of the disease and therefore do not do enough to study and help the emotional and behavioral issues that may also come along with chronic illnesses. Consequently, the problem of a lack of emotional and behavioral support within the medical system is something that must be addressed. This paper attempts to look at this issue from the perspective of the patient and to work toward finding an outcome that is beneficial to all that are involved.
Background
Statement of the Problem
Purpose of the Study
Importance of the Study
Scope of the Study
Overview of the Study
Review of Related Literature
Methodology
Analysis of the Data
Summary, Recommendations and Conclusions
From the Paper "In many instances the medical profession focuses mainly on the physical manifestations of chronic illness and aggressive treatment plans without consideration of the cumulative effects the treatments, medication, physical pain, or surgical procedures have on the individual's psychological, emotional, and behavioral well-being. The emotional, behavioral, and physical manifestations of the illness directly affect the patient's ability to cope, the quality of life, and the manner in which the illness affects family and social relationships. "
Abstract The paper argues persuasively against the government's attempt to thwart the freedom of having marijuana and contends that marijuana poses no threat to us or our community. The paper discusses the flaws in the famous experiment touted as proving the harmful effects of marijuana use and relates the positive effects marijuana can have on cognitive well-being. The paper also looks at benefits for cancer patients and sufferers of chronicpain. The paper asserts that if the earth produces something naturally that could benefit us, then what right does the government have to keep it under lock, key and gun?
From the Paper "It has been said that the freedom of my fist ends where your face begins. This means basically that we do not have the right to infringe on the rights of others, particularly in the event we attempt to thwart freedoms that pose no threat to us or our community. This means that we should not expect to be legislated against on the basis of anything but where our actions infringe on the freedom of others. Marijuana laws seem to violate this basic right and have been passed under misleading and patently falsified information. In general, we don't bother making laws against punching yourself in the face and, as we'll establish by looking at clinical studies, the harm posed by cannabis is much less than a face pummeling. What reason could justify the incarceration of millions of Americans (using taxpayer dollars) on the basis of their possession of a plant that causes no physical harm or addiction? Is there any interest being served by the prosecution of medical marijuana growers by the Federal government who have been authorized by their state?"
Abstract This paper provides a critical review of the literature, a series of case studies and illustrative vignettes to provide a history of acupuncture. It discusses its typical applications and methods and how the techniques developed by Master Tung have been refined and improved by his followers over the years. The paper provides a summary of the research, salient findings and recommendations.
Table of Contents:
Abstract
Introduction
Statement of the Problem
Purpose of Study
Importance of Study
Rationale of Study
Overview of Study
Preliminary Review of Related Literature
A Brief History of Acupuncture
Master Tung's Acupuncture
Modern Applications of Acupuncture
Constraints to Acupuncture
From the Paper "While the application of acupuncture techniques has proven efficacious for a wide range of conditions, including chronic back pain, there are some constraints involved in its use with some people who appear to be genetically incapable of benefiting from the practice. For example, scientists have determined that certain strains of mice do not appear to respond to the pain management potential of acupuncture because they lack the necessary genetic opiate receptors. In this regard, Cargill (1994) reports that, "Some people who do not respond to needling--a 10 percent minority--may fail to do so because they, too, genetically lack these requisite neural receptors" (p. 41). Other people, particularly in the West, may simply believe that such complementary and alternative medical approaches will not work for them, thereby creating a self-fulfilling prophecy as to the efficacy of the approach. Despite these constraints, though, it appears that the benefits of properly administered acupuncture techniques far outweigh any potential constraints, and this forms the essence of the purpose of the proposed instant study."
Tags:chronicpain, therapy anatomy, alternative medicine
Abstract This paper discusses the need for learning when dealing with a chronic illness, such as rheumatoid arthritis. The paper discusses the signs and symptoms of arthritis and then, more specifically, of rheumatoid arthritis. The paper discusses how a patient can better cope with a chronic illness if they are familiar with it.
From the Paper "Analysis of Storytelling Living with a chronic illness such as rheumatoid arthritis requires learning. Arthritis is a progressive disease; strategies for living with chronic disease must change as the disease progresses (Charmaz, 1991). Rheumatoid arthritis is a condition that "involves inflammation of the lining of the joints and tendon sheaths of the body and thickening of the synovium and joint swelling" (Ryan & Oliver, 2002, p. 45)."
