Pain Management and Palliative Care

Pain is an unpleasant feeling. It can originate in the body or in the mind. Those who experience it may find it hard to be active. Pain can cause tiredness, weariness and tension.

Pain can have a variety of causes. Often they are one effect of disease or injury. Those with terminal illnesses like cancer often live with pain.

 Pain management

Pain management is a field of medicine dedicated helping those who suffer pain to find some relief. It is not treatment meant to end the pain or treat the disease.

Pain management and palliative care, together, are meant to help those in pain. But these are two distinct fields and specialties.

How is pain managed?

Pain management is not the work of just one set of professionals such as doctors. Nurses, physiotherapists, pharmacists, mental health specialists and others work together to attain the goals of a treatment plan. Specific medical techniques include:

Physical approach: This can include positioning and exercises for a specific body part to relieve the pain. Physiotherapy also comes under the physical approach.

Surgery, electrical stimulation and even acupuncture are all techniques that fall under the physical approach to pain management.

Psychological approach: This includes the work of mental health counselors and even spiritual leaders. Techniques in Cognitive Behavioural Therapy can be used. Others include meditation, prayer etc.

Recreational or distractive activities are also part of techniques used to control pain.

Medications: There are a range of medications that are used in pain management. These are prescribed according to the treatment for the underlying disease or condition that is the cause of the pain.
Palliative Care

Palliative care is a field of medicine dedicated to easing the suffering of people with a terminal illness. Cancer is a popular example of one such illness. There are others.

Palliative care usually focuses on relief from symptoms associated with the illness. For instance, some illnesses can result in causing breathing difficulties for the patient.

Palliative care is provided by a team of professionals including doctors, nurses, pharmacists, mental health specialists, counselors, spiritual advisers. Palliative care is given to both adults and children. The goal is the same: to relieve pain and other symptoms of an illness.

If you want to arrange for pain management or palliative care please call us, send us a message or click on the “Book now” button on this page or “Book a Service” button at the top of the page.