Abstract
ObjectivesHealth and wellness coaching (HWC) interventions have been reported to improve health outcomes for individuals with chronic diseases such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease, or cancer. However, HWC also holds potential as an effective intervention within a biopsychosocial chronic pain management framework. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of HWC on individuals with chronic pain.MethodsParticipants were referred by their primary care provider or insurance company to a comprehensive telephonic 12-month pain management HWC program. Relationships between pain outcomes and physical and psychological factors were retrospectively analyzed. Mixed linear-effects modeling explored whether physical and psychological variables were associated with pain outcomes over time.ResultsFour hundred nineteen participants (female, 58.9%; mean age, 54.8) enrolled in the program and 181 completed the intervention. After 12 months in the program, statistically and clinically significant reductions were observed for pain intensity (Hedges’ g = 1.00) and pain-related interference (Hedges’ g = 1.13). Linear mixed-effects modeling indicated that improvements in physical functioning and psychological factors were associated with improvements in pain intensity.DiscussionOur results provide a novel analysis on the effects of HWC on chronic pain and pain-related interference. HWC appears to be a promising intervention to improve pain-related outcomes in a population with chronic pain. Further investigation of HWC as an intervention for chronic pain is warranted.
Highlights
Chronic pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as “persistent or recurrent pain lasting longer than 3 months [1].” In addition, chronic pain causes functional and structural changes to the nervous system that result in continued ongoing pain separate from the initial cause
Participants were referred by their primary care provider or insurance company to a comprehensive telephonic 12-month pain management Health and wellness coaching (HWC) program
Our results provide a novel analysis on the effects of HWC on chronic pain and pain-related interference
Summary
Chronic pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as “persistent or recurrent pain lasting longer than 3 months [1].” In addition, chronic pain causes functional and structural changes to the nervous system that result in continued ongoing pain separate from the initial cause. Chronic pain is defined by the International Association for the Study of Pain as “persistent or recurrent pain lasting longer than 3 months [1].”. Experts agree it becomes its own separate medical condition [2] and will include separate codes in the 11th revision of the International Classification of Diseases [3]. Between 30–40% of U.S adults have chronic pain, exceeding the number of Americans living with diabetes, heart disease, or cancer [4]. The Institute of Medicine (IOM) estimates chronic pain cost the United States between $560 and $635 billion annually in direct medical treatment costs and lost productivity [5]. Effective chronic pain treatment has become a moral imperative [3, 6]
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