Most Pain Care Professionals Fear Governmental Regulations

PAINWeek 2007 is a national conference to be held in September. A survey of over 200 health care professionals during PAINWeek 2007 found that almost 50 percent of health care professionals are threatened by government regulation of their pain management practices. About 90 percent of those surveyed said that they fear governmental regulation.

The results from the survey are largely due in part to the controversy regarding the prescribing of opiods which are the strongest version of painkillers.
In March, the state of Washington became the first state in the U.S. to suggest a daily limit regarding the dosage of opiods.

Executive Director of the American Society of Pain Educators, B. Eliot Cole, MD, MPA, says that the government regulations will have a disastrous effect with regards to caregivers being able to help patients with their pain.

Sixty nine percent of the healthcare professionals who were surveyed said that the most important part of their professional was their ability to help patients manage their pain.

PAINWeek 2007 is the first conference of its kind. Over 700 delegates and around 12 national medical associations were in attendance at the Las Vegas conference. Organizations who were in attendance included: the NSA (National Stroke Association), NFRA (National Fibromyalgia Research Association, RNS (Rheumatology Nurses Society), WPS (Western Pain Society), ASPE (American Society of Pain Educators), PSO (Pain Society of Oregon), TNA (Trigeminal Neuralgia Association, NPA, Nevada Psychiatric Association), IMDHA (International Medical and Dental Hypnotherapy Association) and the AOAAM (American Osteopathic Academy of Addiction Medicine).

The conference was designed for podiatrists, pharmacists, psychologists, dentists, physician assistants, nursing professionals and physicians. Some of the courses offered at the conference included Fundamentals in Pain Management, Office-Based Opioid Treatment, a Pain Educators Forum and a Practicum in Pain Management.