EMS World Expo 2018

The management of pain is an important component of the care provided by paramedics and EMTs. Pain is commonly encountered when treating patients with acute injury and illness in the community. However, research has shown that pain is often under-treated or not treated in many EMS settings. Reasons include failure to assess pain, concerns about the accuracy of the patient’s self-report of pain, fear of adverse effects of opioids including addiction, unnecessarily restrictive clinical protocols, and inadequate education in the assessment and treatment of pain. This session aims to enable attendees to identify barriers to effective pain management in their personal practice. In addition, organizational barriers will be identified, and strategies for improving systems of care in EMS in the area of pain management will be discussed.