A comparative study of nurses' and elderly patients' ratings of pain and pain tolerance.

• The purpose of this study was to compare elderly patients' and nurses' ratings of pain and pain tolerance. Data were collected through structured interviews with the patients. The attending nurses completed a questionnaire after conducting a pain assessment. Independent of each other, patients and nurses were asked to rate on a VAS when pain should be treated (pain tolerance) and pain intensity. The VAS has been used both by patients and nurses. The initial selection consisted of 43 patients; however, 9% (n = 4) were unable to complete the VAS. These patients were not significantly older than those who completed the study (n = 39). The results shows that nurses tend to overestimate mild pain and underestimate severe pain. Nurses rated pain tolerance significantly lower than patients. The results also suggest that nurses with training beyond basic nursing education tend to assess patients' pain more accurately than those without additional training. For patients who reported that they had pain prior to hospitalization, the nurses' pain ratings showed a higher agreement than for those who reported that they did not have pain before being hospitalized. At the time of the interviews, 21% (n = 8) of patients felt that their pain was so great they needed treatment. Those patients also were recognized by the attending nurses as being in pain. To improve elderly patients' pain management, practicing nurses must collaborate with researchers to develop specific empirical research nursing knowledge within geriatric pain management. This research-based knowledge should be incorporated into nurses' clinical practice regarding pain management. Specific guidelines must be developed for the assessment, treatment, and documentation of elderly patients' pain.

Ämnesord

MEDICIN OCH HÄLSOVETENSKAP  -- Hälsovetenskap -- Omvårdnad (hsv//swe)

MEDICAL AND HEALTH SCIENCES  -- Health Sciences -- Nursing (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

Aged

psychology

Attitude of Health Personnel

Attitude to Health

Bias (Epidemiology)

Communication

Humans

Nurse-Patient Relations

Nursing Assessment

methods

Nursing Evaluation Research

Nursing Staff

Hospital

psychology

Pain

classification

diagnosis

psychology

Pain Measurement

methods

nursing

Reproducibility of Results

Severity of Illness Index

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

art (ämneskategori)