Nursing ward managers' perceptions of pain prevalence at the aged-care facilities in Japan: a nationwide survey

A mixed-methods study on the pharmacological management of pain in Australian and Japanese nursing homes

BACKGROUND

Understanding how analgesics are used in different countries can inform initiatives to improve the pharmacological management of pain in nursing homes.

AIMS

To compare patterns of analgesic use among Australian and Japanese nursing home residents; and explore Australian and Japanese healthcare professionals' perspectives on analgesic use.

METHODS

Part one involved a cross-sectional comparison among residents from 12 nursing homes in South Australia (N = 550) in 2019 and four nursing homes in Tokyo (N = 333) in 2020. Part two involved three focus groups with Australian and Japanese healthcare professionals (N = 16) in 2023. Qualitative data were deductively content analysed using the World Health Organization six-step Guide to Good Prescribing.

RESULTS

Australian and Japanese residents were similar in age (median: 89 vs 87) and sex (female: 73% vs 73%). Overall, 74% of Australian and 11% of Japanese residents used regular oral acetaminophen, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or opioids. Australian and Japanese healthcare professionals described individualising pain management and the first-line use of acetaminophen. Australian participants described their therapeutic goal was to alleviate pain and reported analgesics were often prescribed on a regular basis. Japanese participants described their therapeutic goal was to minimise impacts of pain on daily activities and reported analgesics were often prescribed for short-term durations, corresponding to episodes of pain. Japanese participants described regulations that limit opioid use for non-cancer pain in nursing homes.

CONCLUSION

Analgesic use is more prevalent in Australian than Japanese nursing homes. Differences in therapeutic goals, culture, analgesic regulations and treatment durations may contribute to this apparent difference.

Pain assessment and management in care homes: understanding the context through a scoping review

Background

Internationally, 2–5% of people live in residential or nursing homes, many with multi-morbidities, including severe cognitive impairment. Pain is frequently considered an expected part of old age and morbidity, and may often be either under-reported by care home residents, or go unrecognized by care staff. We conducted a systematic scoping review to explore the complexity of pain recognition, assessment and treatment for residents living in care homes, and to understand the contexts that might influence its management.

Methods

Scoping review using the methodological framework of Levac and colleagues. Articles were included if they examined pain assessment and/or management, for care or nursing home residents. We searched Medline, CINAHL, ASSIA, PsycINFO, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, and Google Scholar; reference lists were also screened, and website searches carried out of key organisations. Conversations with 16 local care home managers were included to gain an understanding of their perspective.

Results

Inclusion criteria were met by 109 studies. Three overarching themes were identified: Staff factors and beliefs - in relation to pain assessment and management (e.g. experience, qualifications) and beliefs and perceptions relating to pain. Pain assessment – including use of pain assessment tools and assessment/management for residents with cognitive impairment. Interventions - including efficacy/effects (pharmaceutical/non pharmaceutical), and pain training interventions and their outcomes.

Overall findings from the review indicated a lack of training and staff confidence in relation to pain assessment and management. This was particularly the case for residents with dementia.

Conclusions

Further training and detailed guidelines for the appropriate assessment and treatment of pain are required by care home staff. Professionals external to the care home environment need to be aware of the issues facing care homes staff and residents in order to target their input in the most appropriate way.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12877-021-02333-4.

The prevalence, impact and management of musculoskeletal disorders in older people living in care homes: a systematic review

The aim was to systematically review the literature describing the prevalence, impact and current management of musculoskeletal pain in older people living in care homes. Published literature (AMED, CINAHL, EMBASE, psycINFO, MEDLINE, Cochrane Library) and unpublished literature (OpenGrey, the WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, Current Controlled Trials, UK National Research Register Archive) were searched on 1 March 2015. All studies assessing the prevalence, impact and management of musculoskeletal disorders in older people living in care homes were included. Literature was appraised using the CASP cohort and qualitative critical appraisal tools. Data were analysed using descriptive statistical approaches, meta-analysis and meta-ethnography techniques. Twenty-four papers reporting the results of 263,775 care home residents in 12 countries were identified. The evidence base was moderate in quality. Prevalence of musculoskeletal pain for people in care homes was 30.2 % (95 % confidence intervals 29.9-30.5 %; n = 105,463). Care home residents reported that musculoskeletal pain had a significant impact on their perceived independence and overall ability to participate in everyday activities of daily living. Three papers which presented data on interventions demonstrated that whilst multi-component assessment and management packages did not significantly change clinical outcomes, these empowered care home staff to feel more confident in managing these patients. Musculoskeletal pain is a common problem in care homes worldwide, and residents report significant impact on their lives. However, there is uncertainty regarding how to assess and manage such pain. PROSPERO Registration Number: CRD42014009824.