Quality of Pain Management among Post-Operative Patients in Bir Hospital

Abstract

Background: Most of the patients experienced pain after surgery. Inadequately managed pain affects the physiological and psychological state of the patient, interferes with daily activities, reduces the satisfaction of care provided, and interferes with quality of life. The study aims to assess the quality of pain management among admitted postoperative patients of Bir Hospital, Nepal. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at the National Academy of Medical Science, Bir Hospital using the Revised American Pain Society Patient Outcome Questionnaire and patients’ charts. A total of 352 post-operative patients were interviewed. Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the severity of pain, and satisfaction levels. Spearman’s correlation coefficient, chi-square test, and ordinal logistic regression were used as an analytical approach using SPSS Version 16. Results: About 95.2% of patients reported postoperative pain during the first 24 hours after surgery with a mean pain intensity score of 4.9±2.3. Of these patients, 44.3% had moderate, and 27.8% had severe pain. The mean satisfaction with the quality of postoperative pain management was 4.6 ± 2.3. Only 21.6% were very satisfied with pain management. There was a significant positive correlation between the pain intensity score with the interference of physical and emotional activities. Satisfaction with quality of pain management was significantly associated with the patient’s demand for pain medications and intensity of pain. The satisfaction with the quality of pain management was 3.4 times, 7.1 times, and 8.7 times more likely in moderate, mild, and no pain intensity in comparison to severe pain intensity respectively. Conclusion: The majority of postoperative patients experienced moderate to severe pain and the majority of patients were only moderately satisfied with the quality of pain management. Hence, additional efforts are required to reduce postoperative pain and improve the quality of pain management.