ARMA roundtable on Pain
In October 2019 ARMA held a roundtable bringing together people working on chronic pain from a range of perspectives to discuss what might be done to improve the experience of people living with chronic pain. Around 10–14% of people (6 – 8 million) experience moderate to severely disabling pain. Currently services and support for these people are difficult to access. Whilst not all chronic pain is musculoskeletal, osteoarthritis and back pain are associated with over half of all chronic pain, so that the lack of support is a key issue for us.
The report of the roundtable sets out the key points made during the discussion of the issues and possible solutions, case studies of good practice and recommendations for action.
Recommendations for local health economies
- Changing commissioning, taking a strategic population health approach to ensure money is focused on the right things.
- Developing community, place based, networked, biopsychosocial approaches to pain – a pain MDT without walls.
- Social prescribing to provide support for self-management and peer support at scale.
- A local group with representation similar to that at the round table to drive change in each area.
- There are opportunities presented by the current direction in the NHS, such as the way commissioning is changing through Integrated Care Systems and Primary Care Networks. People working in or advocating for pain services locally should engage with this work.
Recommendations for national bodies
- HCP education to include understanding and management of pain.
- Education and reinforcement messages to emphasise the biopsychosocial approach.
- Public education – including employers and public attitudes
See also: ARMA’s policy page on Pain and other posts tagged ‘chronic pain‘ on our website.