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Forget the DEA: Relieve Patients' Pain
Emergency Medicine News, 06/25/09

Scheck A - What's the most DEA-proof way to assess pain during those deadline-a-minute shifts in the ED? Research from emergency physicians suggests it is a combination of the physician and the pain scale. Many patients who show up at the ED in pain don't really want analgesia, and most of those who do get it. The fact that patients want to speak to emergency staff about their pain symptoms comes as no surprise. Research into pain has shown that sufferers' anxiety actually is reduced in the presence of the same white-coated medical professionals who make blood pressure spike in other kinds of patients. Patient emotions can be a significant contributing factor to perceived pain levels. The emergency physician can have a mitigating effect on it, simply by engaging in the art of conversation. Researchers have found that human interaction, particularly with a sympathetic authority, can cause a rapid decline in the worry factor, effectively dimming pain perception, at least in a substantial number of cases. Patients who are told about the probable cause of their pain, for example, such as what to expect from the medication, and who are given empathic advice in the process seem to benefit in self-described ways, such as declines in symptoms and episodes.

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