Working towards developing an interprofessional pain management curricula for clinicians

Zoe Letwin

doi:10.5206/uwomj.v87i1.1796

Abstract

Pain management receives minimal attention in the education of healthcare professionals. An environmental scan was conducted to assess the current pain management educational programs with a focus on interprofessionalism within a competency-based education framework in order to determine gaps before implementing the future master’s-level Interprofessional Pain Management degree program to be implemented at Western University. This paper outlines the methods used in the scan, keywords for the search, and key findings. The findings highlight several current interprofessional pain management programs, the need for a conceptual framework for interprofessional pain education, consistent core values/principles, and competency-based education embedded in interprofessional pain management and future directions.

Highlights

Pain management receives minimal attention in the education of healthcare professionals
Evidence indicates that health professionals lack adequate knowledge and skill to properly assess and provide strategies to manage pain for their patients.[2]. The purpose of this feature article is to share the existing literature by conducting an environmental scan on interprofessional pain management educational programs in preparation for developing the Interprofessional Pain Management (IPM) master’s level degree program at Western University. This program would be based on a new “collaborative team integrated competencies” framework intended for all healthcare professionals with specific focus on allied health providers
The scan includes a look at competencybased education (CBE), an approach that emphasizes focusing on outcomes, abilities, reduced emphasis on time-based training, and learner centredness, rather than traditional knowledge-based assessment.[3] method