SIP Spain

Strategy for the improvement of attention to pain in Galicia

Galicia is a Spanish region with nearly 3 million people, which has complete autonomy in setting health policies to meet the needs of an ageing and largely dispersed population.

In May 2010, Galician Health Minister began working on developing a "comprehensive strategy for patient care in pain". This project is being led by Mercedes Carrera and Dolores Martin, from the General Directorate of patient safety and quality care, and supported both by the General Manager of the Galician Health Service, SERGAS, and the Health Minister herself.

Health staff, professionals and patients have to implement actions to develop the strategy and achieve its main objective, which is "optimal pain management for all Galician citizens and their families."

The actions undertaken during 2011 include: institutional declaration of attention to pain as a fundamental human right, awareness campaigns for professionals and patients, introduction of indicators of pain within the goals of professionals and health managers, including pain as the 5th vital sign on the patient's electronic medical records, creation of committees of pain management in all Galician hospitals and an Advisory Council on Pain Management for the Galician Health Service.

With all these activities, the implementation of the strategy in all Galician hospitals has been achieved, with a significant increase in both, the knowledge of the real intensity of patient pain, the registration in their electronic medical records and the relief of pain among inpatients.

The actions planned for 2012 are focused on the following objectives:

- The development of the strategy and procedures for chronic pain in primary care. - The implementation of training programs in pain for nurses, GPs and training doctors. - Analysis, evaluation and definition of the processes for the attention to chronic pain in the Galician Pain Care Units.

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