What assessment skills can a nurse use to monitor for pain?
Since pain is a subjective symptom, assessment relies on the patient’s self-report and the use of the nursing art of therapeutic communication and trust. Our culture has a long history of undertreating pain. Many patients have learned that our health care system has been negatively responsive to pain complaints. Consequently, there are a whole slew of names for pain sufferers such as drug seekers, addicts, doctor shoppers, and clock-watchers. Many pain patients also don’t understand the language necessary to report pain symptoms. When asked about pain, a patient may say, “It just hurts.” Nurses need to educate patients on the descriptors and components required for a full pain assessment. The patient’s description of pain is a key piece of information for treatment plan development. Intuition is also important. Nurses often sense when a patient may underreport or overreport pain using a pain scale. This is where education and communication are essential. What’s the difference between p
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