Search

Acute pain is one of the main reasons for seeking the emergency services being considered a true public health problem and featuring a valuable symptom in research and definition of the patient’s diagnosis. Thus this study aimed to understand the acute pain evolution, the patient hospitalized at the Emergency Unit, a South Teaching Hospital of the country, using the Verbal Numeric Pain Scale; and to evaluate and control acute pain patients using the instrument proposed by McCaffery and Beebe. This was a study with a quantitative, cross-sectional, descriptive approach. The collection was held at the Emergency Unit from the South Teaching Hospital in Brazil, from July to September 2012, with a convenience sample of 24 adult patients admitted to the emergency room with pain complaints (Opinion no. 2023/2012). The high intensity pain wasthe main reason in the emergency demand. Simple analgesics were the most used, followed by opioids and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory hormone. The instrument helped the nurse concerning the record of the events and the evolution of the clinical signals regarding the pain. However, there were weaknesses in their use. It is hoped that this research encourage nurses to develop and validate the Brazilian instruments, feasible for the dynamics of our reality, but also that theymonitor and evaluate the acute pain patients in emergency units and protocols that optimize care nursing, which is provided for the individual with painful problem in the emergency departments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]