Chronic pain is complex and can be difficult to treat. One in five Australians live with chronic pain, and this rises to one in three for people over 65.
NPS MedicineWise has resources specially developed for people living with chronic pain and encourages sufferers to have conversations about their experiences and concerns with health providers and others who can provide support.
People who are actively engaged in self-management techniques report lower levels of pain-related disability, improvement in mood, better general health and reduced use of health services.
"It is important for people with chronic pain to be well informed and supported in ways that allow them to be actively involved in their own management," said NPS MedicineWise clinical adviser Dr Andrew Boyden
"Chronic pain can cause disruption to many aspects of people's lives. However, an individual's experience of pain is unique to them and being able to have good and open communication with their healthcare providers and other supporters is an important aspect of pain management."
Resources that can help with this important conversation and other aspects of active self-management include:
This free online tool has been developed to help people with chronic pain identify issues they would like to discuss with their doctor, specialist, psychologist, friends, family or partner.
Users can:
- Create a personal summary (as a printout or PDF) of the issues they would like to talk about
- Link to chronic pain information, resources and tools relevant to them
- Use the personalised summary to start a conversation and keep track of progress
A pain diary can be used to record how pain affects daily activities and how medicines, other therapies and activities may influence pain
The downloadable NPS MedicineWise pain diary aims to help people and their healthcare providers to:
- Understand what makes the pain worse and what helps to relieve pain
- Track responses to a pain management plan, including changes in medicines or other therapies
Through the NPS MedicineWise website, people can find clearly written information covering topics from what chronic pain is and why each person's experience is unique, to the many strategies that can help manage pain and improve function.
http://www.nps.org.au/
