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Palliative cancer care - pain - Management
How should I approach pain assessment?
- Discuss pain with the person directly if possible. The person, if competent and able to communicate, is the most reliable source of information about their pain. If it is not possible to ask them (because of cognitive impairment or communication deficits, for example), the family or healthcare professionals may be able to help with the assessment, bearing in mind that family members may overestimate, and healthcare professionals underestimate, the person's pain.
- Assess each pain a person has, bearing in mind that there may be more than one. Seek specialist advice if assessment is difficult because of complex or multiple pains.
- Assess pain regularly, particularly if it is not adequately controlled.
- Review the medical history and medical records to determine the known site and extent of the cancer. Pain occurring distant from the previously known sites of cancer may indicate either a non-malignant cause or secondary spread of the cancer.
- Assess the influence of psychological, social, and spiritual factors on the person's experience of pain.
In depth
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