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Pain Assessment Essay

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Many individuals say that pain is what the patient says, and it occurs wherever the patient says it does. Pain assessment can be complicated, subjective, an unpleasant experience and it sometimes cannot be explained. It means different things or levels to different people. Some believe there is no correct or incorrect responses to pain. As a surgery nurse, we evaluate our patients for pain behaviors, such as facial grimacing, agitation, rubbing painful areas, increased heart rates, raised blood pressures, shaking and anxiety. Patients worry about surgery procedures, examinations, hospitalizations and the pain that will occur. Causing them to go untreated, which can result in extended hospital stays, a decline in patient contentment, and add …show more content…

We assist and care for patients from children to elderly, the one-dimensional is used for patients whose pain is intense. Visual scale, verbal rating and numeric scale are used on young-older adults with zero being “no pain to 10 being the worst” or the express possible pain of mild, moderate and sever. Lastly, the one we use on children is Flaccs-(“face, legs, activity, cry, consolability”) and the Wong-Baker- 6 Faces for ages 2-7 (“no hurt”-“hurts worst”). (Jensen, 2011.pp.121-126)
Pain intensity, pain-related illnesses, pain duration and pain affect are characteristics that define pain and its effects. These pain characteristics can be major complains of patients, they influences surgical outcomes, effect coping strategies and pain perception. Many patients have difficulties in defining which response is best for their pain situation. (Spine, 2006)
To provide ideal patient care, nurses require applicable information, skilled abilities, and new approaches toward pain assessment to help with control. Assessment information based on all available indications of pain assessment prevents patients from suffering. It is a crucial element in delivering effective pain management. The fifth vital sign has been recognized as a challenge to accelerate responsibility for pain assessment. (Wood,

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Nurses and physicians need to express themselves in a clear and precise manner, their message should rely on verification and collaborative problem solving. They need to displaying a calm and supportive demeanor under stress, maintenance of mutual respect, and authentic understanding of the unique role (Robinson, Gorman, Slimmer, Yudkowsky, 2010). Not everyone was born being able to express themselves in such a manner, therefore providing the necessary education and skills will help both nurses and physicians gain the confidence and competence they need to work

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How many times have you depended on a doctor with your life? Could you always explain exactly how you felt, or was the doctor helping you figure out the exact pain? Many don’t realize how important it is for the medical field to use the technique of thin slicing, the 5 second judgement of someone based upon their expressions. Patients of all kinds depend on doctors to help them in any situation, even when they cannot express exactly their symptoms. Elders, adults, and especially children can not always grasp what pain they are experiencing and how severe it might be.

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Providers may have limited time so they rely on the nurses to recognize the requirements for different pain medication and recommend what medications have worked for the patients in the past. Additionally, becoming comfortable with SBAR will help build confidence when communicating with other medical staff members. Communicating with other medical staff members is very important, but recognizing pain in a patient is of more importance. Early identification of pain in a post-surgical patient is important in overall pain management.

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