Advancing Pain Care—Core Competencies for Pain Management

The various unpleasant sensations that collectively are known as pain are among the most important means by which the body signals that it is hurt or malfunctioning, and everyone experiences pain in one form or another at least occasionally. Regrettably, many people experience pain as a regularly recurring or continuous part of their lives as a result of advanced age, injury, or chronic illness, among other reasons.Because pain so often accompanies injury or illness, it is the overall most common symptom that causes people to consult a physician or other health care provider. And because pain is such a common and important symptom, much time and attention in health care professional training is devoted to understanding the various types of pain and to learning to recognize the diagnostic significance of the anatomic location, character, frequency, intensity, and other characteristics of pain. Indeed, we are taught that the nature of one's pain in and of itself can be largely diagnostic of some conditions. In stark contrast, relatively scant attention in health care professional training is given to understanding how to successfully manage pain in its many forms and contexts.The lack of attention to managing pain in health care professional training is perplexing given the frequency of pain as a symptom and the large …