Abstract
Purpose
Little or no information exists on the services that are currently available for the treatment of chronic pain across the different regions of Canada. As a first step, this study documented the hospital-based resources and services offered for the management of chronic non-cancer pain within anesthesia departments in Québec.
Methods
In collaboration with the Association of Anesthesiologists of Québec and the Société québécoise de la douleur, a provincial survey was conducted to assess the availability of services for chronic pain management within hospital-based anesthesia departments along with the volume of clinical activities, staff composition, treatments offered and space facilities.
Results
The response rate was 100%. Fifty of the 69 departments (73%) offered services for the management of chronic non-cancer pain but the services were often limited. Twenty-six percent (13/50) of the departments provided some form of multidisciplinary assessment and treatment but only three had a core team comprised of an anesthesiologist, a nurse, a psychologist, and a physical therapist. Examination of patient waiting lists of the surveyed departments revealed disturbing results: approximately 4,500 patients were waiting for their first appointment to see a pain consultant, and nearly 3,000 (67%) had been waiting for nine months or more.
Conclusion
Although this survey did not include the services offered in departments other than anesthesia, the results show the extent to which the province of Québec is under-resourced for the management of chronic pain patients both in terms of access to treatment and quality of the services offered.
Résumé
Objectif
Peu ou pas d’informations existent sur les services actuellement offerts pour le traitement de la douleur chronique à travers le Canada. Comme première étape, nous avons vérifié les ressources et les services offerts par les départements d’anesthésiologie du Québec.
Méthode
En collaboration avec l’Association des anesthésiologistes du Québec et la Société québécoise de la douleur, une enquête provinciale a été menée pour évaluer l’accessibilité aux services de traitement de la douleur chronique dans les départements d’anesthésiologie des hôpitaux de même que le volume d’activités cliniques, la composition du personnel, les traitements offerts et l’espace alloué pour la dispensation des services.
Résultats
Le taux de réponse a été de 100 %. Cinquante des 69 départements (73 %) offraient des services de traitement de la douleur non cancéreuse, mais ils étaient souvent limités. Vingt-six pour cent (13/50) des départements assuraient une certaine forme d’évaluation et de traitement multidisciplinaire, mais trois seulement avaient une équipe de base comprenant un anesthésiologiste, une infirmière, un psychologue et un physiothérapeute. L’examen des listes d’attentes des départements sondés a donné des résultats troublants : environ 4 500 patients étaient en attente d’une première évaluation et près de 3 000 (67 %) attendaient depuis neuf mois ou plus.
Conclusion
Même si l’enquête n’inclut pas les services offerts par des départements autres que l’anesthésie, les résultats montrent à quel point les ressources pour le traitement de la douleur sont limitées au Québec, tant au niveau de l’accessibilité que de la qualité des services offerts.
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This study was supported by a research operating grant from the Québec Pain Research Initiative-Valorisation Recherche Québec to Dr. M. Choinière and her collaborators. At the time of the study, Dr. Choinière was a Senior Clinician-Scientist supported by the Fonds de la recherche en santé du Québec.
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Veillette, Y., Dion, D., Altier, N. et al. The treatment of chronic pain in Québec: a study of hospital-based services offered within anesthesia departments. Can J Anesth 52, 600–606 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03015769
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03015769