Documented assessments and treatments of patients seeking emergency care because of pain

Pharmacologic Pain Management Trends among Adults Hospitalized with Cellulitis: An Evidence-Based Practice Project

BACKGROUND

Nurses commonly administer opioids, following "as needed" order sets, to patients hospitalized for acute pain conditions like cellulitis. Practice guidelines recommend limiting opioid administration for acute pain management. At two hospitals in the Pacific Northwest, an opioid stewardship committee was formed to align with best practice.

AIMS

The main objective was to describe changes to inpatient rates of opioid and non-opioid administration following implementation of evidence-based opioid stewardship efforts.

DESIGN

Observational, retrospective, evidence-based practice project.

SETTINGS

One 200-bed and one 680-bed hospital in Washington State.

PARTICIPANTS/SUBJECTS

Data were included from patients aged 18 years or older hospitalized for cellulitis.

METHODS

Demographic and pain-related data were extracted from the electronic health record (n = 4,523 encounters) guided by the symptom management framework. The proportion of patients receiving opioid or non-opioid medications before and after implementation of evidence-based practice opioid stewardship interventions was calculated descriptively. A logistic regression tested factors related to administration of an opioid medication.

RESULTS

The proportion of patients receiving an opioid decreased following opioid stewardship efforts while those receiving non-opioid analgesics remained stable. Factors significantly influencing inpatient opioid administration were: average inpatient pain score, pre-hospital opioid prescription, length of stay, and year of hospitalization.

CONCLUSIONS

Analgesic administration treating painful, acute cellulitis at two hospitals in the Pacific Northwest included opioid and non-opioid medications. The proportion of patients receiving opioids decreased following best practice opioid stewardship actions. Opportunities may exist for nurses to collaborate with providers to improve inpatient analgesic administration practices.

Demographic, Clinical, and Health System Characteristics Associated With Pain Assessment Documentation and Pain Severity in U.S. Military Patients in Combat Zone Emergency Departments, 2010-2013

Emergency department (ED) pain assessment documentation in trauma patients is critical to ED pain care. This retrospective, cross-sectional study used trauma registry data to evaluate U.S. military combat zone trauma patients injured between 2010 and 2013 requiring ≥ 24-hr inpatient care. Study aims were to identify the frequency of combat zone ED pain assessment documentation and describe pain severity. Secondary aims were to construct statistical models to explain variation in pain assessment documentation and pain severity.Pain scores were documented in 60.5% (n = 3,339) of the 5,518 records evaluated. The proportion of records with ED pain scores increased yearly. Pain assessment documentation was associated with documentation of ED vital signs, comprehensive facility, more recent year, prehospital (PH) heart rate of 60-100 beats/min, ED Glasgow Coma Scale score of 15 vs. 14, blunt trauma, and lower injury severity score (ISS).Pain severity scores ranged from 0 to 10; mean = 5.5 (SD = 3.1); median = 6. Higher ED pain scores were associated with Army service compared with Marine Corps, no documented PH vital signs, higher PH pain score, ED respiratory rate < 12 or >16, moderate or severe ISS compared with minor ISS, treatment in a less-equipped facility, and injury in 2011 or 2012 vs. 2010. The pain severity model explained 20.4% of variance in pain severity.Overall, frequency of pain assessment documentation in combat-zone EDs improved yearly, but remained suboptimal. Pain severity was poorly predicted by demographic, clinical, and health system variables available from the trauma registry, emphasizing the importance of individual assessment.

A Nursing Pain Assessment and Record Information System: Design and Application in the Oncology Department

Pain is an unpleasant sensory and emotional feeling accompanying existing, impending, or potential tissue damage. Valid pain assessment and standardized pain documentation are important in oncology pain management; however, they are still deficient. Thus, we developed a pain assessment and record information system for nurses in the oncology department and implemented a questionnaire survey to evaluate users' acceptance of the system. The pain assessment system focused on usability and efficiency to provide a modified workflow that was safe, less time-consuming, patient centered, enjoyable, and efficient. The pain assessment and record chart types in the system enabled greater standardization of pain assessments and records. The application of the system greatly improved the efficiency of nursing in the oncology department, guiding nurses in an accurate and comprehensive patient pain assessment and contributing significantly to further improvement in pain care standards and care decisions. Nurses and doctors surveyed reported a high degree of satisfaction with factors such as saving time and improving the capacity of pain control, suggesting that the system enhanced the quality of pain management. Through this system, we can promote pain management, improving care quality for patients.

Using education and support strategies to improve the way nurses assess regular and transient pain – A quality improvement study of three hospitals

Background and aims

Systematic and regular pain assessment has been shown to improve pain management. Well-functioning pain assessments require using strategies informed by well-established theory. This study evaluates documented pain assessments reported in medical records and by patients, including reassessment using a Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) after patients receive rescue medication.

Methods

Documentation surveys (DS) and patient surveys (PS) were performed at baseline (BL), after six months, and after 12 months in 44 in-patient wards at the three hospitals in Östergötland County, Sweden. Nurses and nurse assistants received training on pain assessment and support. The Knowledge to Action Framework guided the implementation of new routines.

Results

According to DS pain assessment using NRS, pain assessment increased significantly: from 7% at baseline to 36% at 12 months (p < 0.001). For PS, corresponding numbers were 33% and 50% (p < 0.001). According to the PS, the proportion of patients who received rescue medication and who had been reassessed increased from 73% to 86% (p = 0.003). The use of NRS to document pain assessment after patients received rescue medication increased significantly (4% vs. 17%; p < 0.001).

Conclusions

After implementing education and support strategies, systematic pain assessment increased, an encouraging finding considering the complex contexts of in-patient facilities. However, the achieved assessment levels and especially reassessments related to rescue medication were clinically unsatisfactory. Future studies should include nursing staff and physicians and increase interactivity such as providing online education support. A discrepancy between documented and reported reassessment in association with given rescue medication might indicate that nurses need better ways to provide pain relief.

Implications

The fairly low level of patient-reported pain via NRS and documented use of NRS before and 12 months after the educational programme stresses the need for education on pain management in nursing education. Implementations differing from traditional educational attempts such as interactive implementations might complement educational programmes given at the work place. Standardized routines for pain management that include the possibility for nurses to deliver pain medication within well-defined margins might improve pain management and increase the use of pain assessments. Further research is needed that examines the large discrepancy between patient-reported pain management and documentation in the medical recording system of transient pain.

The effect of supportive emergency department nursing care on pain reduction of patients with Red Sea marine wildlife injuries

INTRODUCTION

The emergency department at Yoseftal hospital in Eilat is on the shore of the Red Sea, and it is visited by patients with marine wildlife injuries. The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of supportive nursing care on the pain level of patients with Red Sea marine wildlife injuries.

METHOD

A prospective quantitative study including 102 patients admitted to the emergency department. The study included a study group (N = 50) and a control group (N = 52). Both groups rated their pain level on the VAS before and after receiving treatment. The control group received the usual treatment, and the study group received the usual nursing treatment along with structured patient guidance and support.

RESULTS

There was a significant difference in the level of pain after the intervention between the control and the study group. In the study group, the level of pain was significantly reduced compared with the control group (p < 0.001).

DISCUSSION

Nursing training and patient guidance contributed to increasing cooperation with patients and pain reduction. Therefore, training interventions should be structured and assimilated as an integral part of nursing practice.

Barriers and enablers to emergency department nurses' management of patients' pain

Pain is the most common reason for presentation to the emergency department (ED). On presentation patients expect rapid pain relief, yet this is often not met. Despite extensive improvements in analgesia medication there are still barriers to nurses' assessment, management, documentation, and reassessment of pain. The aim of this study is to identify barriers, enablers, and current nursing knowledge regarding pain management. Using an anonymous quantitative web-based survey, members of the College of Emergency Nurses New Zealand were invited to complete a questionnaire on pain assessment and management. The questionnaires were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Enablers to ED nurses' improved management of pain were the provision of nurse-initiated analgesic protocols and pain management champions. Common barriers perceived by the respondents were the responsibility of caring for acutely ill patients as well as a patient with pain. Similar barriers to previous research were identified and included lack of time, workload, reluctance of clinicians to prescribe analgesia, and the lack of nursing knowledge regarding opioid administration. Raising awareness that oligoanalgesia exists in the ED is essential. This research suggested that nurses would benefit from ongoing education on the usage of opioids. Nurses' attitude regarding patients' right to expect total pain relief as a consequence of treatment was also an issue. ED nurses, by virtue of their role, are in a unique position to be leaders in pain assessment and pain management.