Evaluation of a Pain Identification and Treatment Training for Medical Students Based on the “Good Medical Practice” Framework

Year 2023, Volume: 14 Issue: 2, 136 - 140, 17.03.2023

Şebnem Rumeli Atıcı Gülçin Gazioğlu Türkyılmaz

https://doi.org/10.31067/acusaglik.1216539

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a pain identification and treatment training program for medical students based on the “good medical practice” framework.
Methods: A questionnaire was used to collect data from a total of 732 students who received the 3-day pain identification and treatment training held by the algology department between 2014 and 2021. The questionnaire included 8 questions about the definition of pain, types of pain, assessing pain, treatment methods and analgesic drugs. The students completed the questionnaire in person before training and 3 months after the training. A total of 732 pre-training and 230 post-training questionnaires were included in the analysis.
Results: Correct response rates before and after the training, respectively, were 11.3%(n=83) and 77.4%(n=178) for knowing which nerve fibers conduct pain; 22.3%(n=163) and 74.8%(n=172) for knowing what “VAS” stands for; 76%(n=556) 90.4%(n=208) for giving correct examples of chronic pain; 6.3%(n=46) and 63.5%(n=146) for knowing what the World Health Organization’s analgesic ladder is; and 24.8%(n=178) and 87.7%(n=202) for giving correct examples of strong opioid analgesics (p<0.001 for all).
Conclusion: It is known that pain is one of the main reasons for presenting to primary health care services. Therefore, we believe it is important for medical students to learn the diagnosis and treatment of pain in programs that use different teaching methods and encourage active participation of the student in order to ensure the permanence of knowledge, increase physician competence and confidence, and prevent the mismanagement of pain.

Keywords

pain, pain management, medical students, training techniques

References

• Ponte CD, and Johnson-Tribino J. Attitudes and knowledge about pain: an assessment of West Virginia family physicians. Family medicine. 2005;37(7):477-80.
• Rice K, Ryu JE, Whitehead C, et al. Medical Trainees' Experiences of Treating People With Chronic Pain: A Lost Opportunity for Medical Education. Academic medicine : journal of the Association of American Medical Colleges. 2018;93(5):775-80.
• Upshur CC, Luckmann RS, and Savageau JA. Primary care provider concerns about management of chronic pain in community clinic populations. Journal of general internal medicine. 2006;21(6):652-5.
• Leila NM, Pirkko H, Eeva P, et al. Training medical students to manage a chronic pain patient: both knowledge and communication skills are needed. European journal of pain (London, England). 2006;10(2):167-70.
• The Pain Management Core Curriculum for European Medical Schools. European Federation of IASP Chapters. 2013.
• Seren LP, Yakıncı C. Tıp eğitiminde akılda kalıcılığı nasıl sağlarız? Çocuk Sağlığı ve Hastalıkları Dergisi. 2015;58:123-30.
• Scheidecker A, Green A, Syed MH, et al. Introducing Simulation-Based Learning for Trainees in Chronic Pain Medicine: Needs Assessment and Suggestions for Training Scenarios. Medical science educator. 2021;31(4):1463-9.
• Vargovich AM, Schumann ME, Xiang J,et al. Difficult Conversations: Training Medical Students to Assess, Educate, and Treat the Patient with Chronic Pain. Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry. 2019;43(5):494-8.
• Elçin M, Odabaşı O, Turan S, et al. 2016-17 Öğretim Yılı İyi Hekimlik Uygulamaları. 14.ed. Ankara, Hacettepe Üniversitesi Basımevi; 2016.
• Uğurlu A. Do The Needs of Society Require to Restructure Medical Education? Ankara Medical Journal. 2012;12(2):95-9.
• Solakoğlu Z, Darendeliler F. Daha İyi Tıp Eğitimi İçin Tartışılan Güncel Görüşler Yükseköğretim Dergisi. 2013;3(3):165-8.
• Mäntyselkä P, Kumpusalo E, Ahonen R, et al. Pain as a reason to visit the doctor: a study in Finnish primary health care. Pain. 2001;89(2-3):175-80.
• Holman H. Chronic disease--the need for a new clinical education. Jama. 2004;292(9):1057-9.
• Bradshaw YS, Patel Wacks N, Perez-Tamayo A, Myers B, Obionwu C, Jr., Lee RA, et al. Deconstructing One Medical School's Pain Curriculum: II. Partnering with Medical Students on an Evidence-Guided Redesign. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass). 2017;18(4):664-79.
• Heirich MS, Sinjary LS, Ziadni MS, et al. Use of Immersive Learning and Simulation Techniques to Teach and Research Opioid Prescribing Practices. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass). 2019;20(3):456-63.
• Mezei L, and Murinson BB. Pain education in North American medical schools. The journal of pain. 2011;12(12):1199-208.
• Shipton EE, Bate F, Garrick R, et al. Systematic Review of Pain Medicine Content, Teaching, and Assessment in Medical School Curricula Internationally. Pain and therapy. 2018;7(2):139-61.
• Briggs EV, Battelli D, Gordon D, et al. Current pain education within undergraduate medical studies across Europe: Advancing the Provision of Pain Education and Learning (APPEAL) study. BMJ open. 2015;5(8):e006984.
• Ten Cate O. Competency-Based Postgraduate Medical Education: Past, Present and Future. GMS journal for medical education. 2017;34(5):Doc69.
• Brenner GJ, Newmark JL, and Raemer D. Curriculum and cases for pain medicine crisis resource management education. Anesthesia and analgesia. 2013;116(1):107-10.
• Hoelzer BC, Moeschler SM, and Seamans DP. Using simulation and standardized patients to teach vital skills to pain medicine fellows. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass). 2015;16(4):680-91.
• Singh N, Nielsen AA, Copenhaver DJ, et al. Advancing Simulation-Based Education in Pain Medicine. Pain medicine (Malden, Mass). 2018;19(9):1725-36.