Living with wound-associated pain: impact on the patient and what clinicians really think.

Objective: To gain an insight into current practice and practitioner opinions on the recognition and management of wound-associated pain as compared with that previously presented in the literature.
Method: Delegates who attended Wound Expo 2009 and participated in the interactive learning workshops held in the wound pain educational zone were surveyed. This was therefore a convenience sample. All participants signed a consent form prior to the interactive voting session to allow their anonymous responses to be used. The survey consisted of questions that had been devised to generate a clearer insight into current practice and opinion on wound-associated pain. Questions were posed during the workshop (displayed in a PowerPoint presentation) and attendees were given 10 seconds per question to select their preferred responses, each using an individual electronic interactive voting panel. All responses were recorded electronically and the data were subsequently analysed.
Results: The survey identified a number of positive approaches used by the delegates in their assessment of wound-associated pain. These include a high level of continuous assessment, an awareness of the wide range of pain assessment tools available and an acknowledgement of the need for a multiprofessional approach to pain management.
Conclusion: The findings highlight the issues clinicians face in the recognition, assessment and management of wound-associated pain during their everyday practice. Although many of these issues are difficult to resolve entirely, a fundamental element is that the patient's experiences must be assessed and documented in a consistent and informed manner, and then appropriate management actions taken.