The Eighth Annual Josefina Magno Conference, “The Many Faces of Pain in Palliative Care,” concluded with action plans to bring better management of pain and symptoms directly to the bedside of millions of Americans in pain from chronic, life-limiting illness.
Pain management professionals from across the United States representing various medical disciplines agreed that despite numerous advances in the science of pain management, there remains a significant gap between knowledge and practice. “We know that barriers to the best possible pain management exist,” said Malene S. Davis, president and CEO of Capital Hospice which hosts the annual conference. “By raising professionals’ awareness of the barriers and educating them about techniques and resources to overcome those obstacles, we’ll narrow the gap between knowledge and practice.”
One critical issue identified at the conference was the need to educate medical professionals to properly assess a patient’s pain. “You can’t adequately treat pain without knowing enough about it,” said Frank Ferris, M.D., medical director of palliative care standards and outcomes at San Diego Hospice, and a recognized authority on palliative care, the medical specialty of pain and symptom management. “Moreover, one cannot adequately assess pain unless one asks the patient the right questions, which often doesn’t happen.” Dr. Ferris’ approach has been to work with hospitals and hospice organizations to make accurate pain assessment as routine as checking a patient’s other vital signs such as temperature, heart rate, blood pressure and breathing. “The standards we create and the people we train will, one day, look after us when it is time to receive care,” he added.
Gary Gardia, a national speaker and consultant on end-of life care based in St. George, Utah, and a social worker by profession, said effective pain management requires looking at the holistic dimensions of both patient and family. “Too often, we focus just on the patient’s physical pain,” he said. “Failing to recognize the other dimensions of pain can result in not completely addressing the suffering that is associated with dying.”
Betty Ferrell, R.N., PhD, FAAN, a clinician and research scientist in pain management at City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California, told the conference that pain also has a spiritual and existential dimension and to ignore that is to damage the essence of the patient. “We have an ethical obligation to treat pain in all of its many dimensions,” she said. Dr. Ferrell’s work initially focused on nursing aspects of pain management and has broadened the field to include the psycho-social effects of poor pain control.
Ferris, Gardia and Ferrell were recognized at the conference with the Josefina Magno Excellence in Education and Leadership Award for their work to advance the science and practice of pain and symptom management.
The award and conference series are named for Josefina Magno, M.D., credited with pioneering the modern concept of hospice and advanced pain and symptom management known as palliative care, in the late 1970’s. Dr. Magno was the founding medical director of Hospice of Northern Virginia, now known as Capital Hospice.
From left, Frank Ferris, MD, of San Diego Hospice, Betty Ferrell, RN, PhD, FAAN, of City of Hope National Medical Center in Duarte, California, and Gary Gardia of St. George, Utah, were honored for their work in advancing the science and practice of palliative care.
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