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Acute Pain Clinic - Nurse Led | Auckland | Te Toka Tumai

Public Service, Pain Management

Description

The management principles of this service are:

  • Continuity of care within the case management model of the nurse specialists within ADHB
  • To provide a medication review for patients who have been under the care of the APS as inpatients
  • To lower the risk of presentation to the Emergency Department and readmission for pain management alone, in patients recently discharged from hospital
  • To provide education about pain and its management
  • To provide telephone support for patients and health providers
  • To provide education on evidence–based, holistic lifestyle measures, in order to assist in the management of pain
  • To refer on to the Auckland Regional Pain Service (TARPS), physio or further MDT support if more comprehensive assessment is required and appropriate.

Referral Expectations

The patient has been under the recent care of Acute Pain Service (APS) and fulfils at least one of the following criteria:

  • The patient will be discharged from hospital on opiates that have been started during this hospital admission and are likely to be required for more than 7 days after discharge
  • The patient will be discharged on adjuvant analgesics that have been started during this hospital admission and is likely to need ongoing management of these medications for over 7 days after discharge
  • The patient has persistent pain following surgery or following an injury that impairs activities of daily living
  • The patient requires education on simple, holistic lifestyle measures in order to help manage their pain.


Primary Care Referral

  • If the patient's acute pain is proving to be too difficult to control, the patient's GP may refer them for follow up within 14 days post discharge from ACH. However we can only accept referrals from patients who were known to APS as inpatients and other referral criteria are met and the patient is suitable (see below).

The GP will need to ring and discuss the referral with the Nurse Specialist.  If the patient appears to be too complex for nurse specialist management a relevant medical pain specialist will be contacted.

 

Patients who are generally not suitable for referral:

  • Those with a history of chronic pain prior to the most recent admission to hospital
  • Patients currently under the care of TARPS
  • Those with a history of anxiety/depression that is considered unstable
  • Diagnosed psychiatric history that is considered unstable
  • Recurrent admissions to emergency departments/hospitals for pain management
  • Patients with a history of drug and alcohol abuse.

The above patients will generally require a consultant review at TARPS.

Contact Details

This page was last updated at 11:13AM on August 3, 2024. This information is reviewed and edited by Acute Pain Clinic - Nurse Led | Auckland | Te Toka Tumai.