Publications
APS Bulletin • Volume 17, Number 1, 2007
Nearing 30, APS Awards Excellence in Pain Care
With 30 years of leadership in pain management, the American Pain Society has launched its new Clinical Centers of Excellence (COE) in Management Awards Program to recognize and reward top-quality clinical care in pain management. To mark this milestone and honor the 2007 award recipients, APS will host a gala at its Annual Scientific Meeting in May. A special e-announcement on these award-winning programs will be available in March.
What These Programs Offer
More than 50 million Americans have chronic pain that goes untreated or under-treated, often because of a pervasive attitude that pain is simply a part of life and should be tolerated. Another 25 million Americans experience acute pain every year from trauma or injury or following surgery.
Because programs that provide comprehensive, high-quality pain management require expertise from a diverse team of healthcare professions, they are difficult to implement and maintain. Despite these challenges, these new Centers of Excellence successfully:
- provide care that is patient centered, state-of-the-art, evidence-based, cost-conscious, culturally appropriate, and safe
- provide appropriate access to interdisciplinary and multimodal care, and access to other specialists from a variety of disciplines to ensure expert care
- act as local champions to improve pain management in local, regional, and national systems of care
- demonstrate innovation and serve as models of excellence in the structures, processes, and outcomes that are critical for excellence in pain management
- actively work with other healthcare organizations and the community to improve the quality of pain management across the continuum of care
- demonstrate a commitment to advancing scientific knowledge related to pain and making relevant information available to patients, colleagues, and the public.
Grassroots Focus
Founded in 1978, APS knows the power of both the individual and the group. Its own diverse membership of scientists, clinicians, and other professionals has grown six-fold in 30 years, to 3,200 members. Together these members have helped APS become a national leader and driving force in pain management.
Still, it’s at the local level where most believe that innovative and cutting-edge pain care plans are devised and implemented. The COE program, therefore, seeks to honor forward-thinking healthcare teams who provide pain care at the local level, considered the most influential level of care.
“To be consistently effective and successful, a comprehensive, high-quality pain management program requires the expertise of a diverse team of healthcare professionals who understand the complex mix of clinical, psychological, social, and emotional variables that affect pain patients,” says APS President Judith Paice, PhD RN.
“These awards will recognize pain-care teams that overcome difficult challenges to provide outstanding, exemplary care for those with chronic pain disorders, acute pain after surgery or trauma and in palliative care settings for pain from cancer and other terminal conditions,” says Paice, director of the cancer pain program at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.
Future Needs
As the leading public health problem in the United States, pain is the most common symptom that leads to medical care.
Headache and lower back pain are the most common types of pain. For more than 45 million people undergoing inpatient surgeries and other invasive procedures, acute pain is a common outcome, and studies indicate inadequate management persists.
Pain is a common symptom in many diseases such as diabetes and cancer. Although 7 of 10 cancer patients experience significant pain during their illness, fewer than half receive adequate treatment for their pain.
Chronic pain also hurts the bottom line for businesses, resulting in more than 50 million lost workdays each year. The cost of pain, including medical bills and lost workdays, is estimated at $100 billion per year in the U.S.
Problems associated with pain show no signs of slowing, particularly as our population ages. On the contrary, pain-related problems are bound to increase as Baby Boomers age and the number of older Americans continues to soar.
Innovative, comprehensive pain care is key to tackling these growing issues. At the relatively tender age of 30, APS is proud to honor its professionals who stand at the forefront—and at the front lines—of delivering top-quality care to those suffering in pain.