The assessment of post-stroke shoulder pain
The assessment of post-stroke shoulder pain
The aim of this thesis was to investigate stroke patients’ experiences of shoulder pain and the way communication about it occurs in hospital settings in order to inform better ways of assessing it.
Mixed methods were used to investigate post-stroke shoulder pain from three complementary standpoints. Stroke patients’ experiences of shoulder pain and its communication were explored through focus groups and analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The detection of shoulder pain behaviours in patients with communication deficits was investigated through critical incident interviews with health professionals. To assist patients who are unable to use existing pain measures, a pictorial scale of pain intensity was developed and evaluated.
Findings from these small studies revealed that stroke patients perceive shoulder pain to be affected by a range of physical, psychological and contextual factors. They believe many hospital staff lack awareness of it, that structured pain assessments are hardly ever used and that everyday communication about it is rare. Health professionals vary in their responsiveness to patients’ shoulder pain. Some show expertise in discerning behaviours that indicate it and use detailed reasoning to verify their assumptions, whereas others show less sensitivity. Some patients with language deficits can convey information about pain with help from staff; others may be able to lean how to use tools that are designed to capitalize on their strengths. It was concluded that the psychological and contextual factors that influence pain should be considered in greater depth, that better education of staff would raise awareness of pain and the regular use of assessment instruments targeted to the specific needs of patients would improve care.
University of Southampton
Jackson, Diana
a78e7fe3-9aa2-4ac4-b02b-47f96b2cd326
2004
Jackson, Diana
a78e7fe3-9aa2-4ac4-b02b-47f96b2cd326
Jackson, Diana
(2004)
The assessment of post-stroke shoulder pain.
University of Southampton, Doctoral Thesis.
Record type:
Thesis
(Doctoral)
Abstract
The aim of this thesis was to investigate stroke patients’ experiences of shoulder pain and the way communication about it occurs in hospital settings in order to inform better ways of assessing it.
Mixed methods were used to investigate post-stroke shoulder pain from three complementary standpoints. Stroke patients’ experiences of shoulder pain and its communication were explored through focus groups and analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. The detection of shoulder pain behaviours in patients with communication deficits was investigated through critical incident interviews with health professionals. To assist patients who are unable to use existing pain measures, a pictorial scale of pain intensity was developed and evaluated.
Findings from these small studies revealed that stroke patients perceive shoulder pain to be affected by a range of physical, psychological and contextual factors. They believe many hospital staff lack awareness of it, that structured pain assessments are hardly ever used and that everyday communication about it is rare. Health professionals vary in their responsiveness to patients’ shoulder pain. Some show expertise in discerning behaviours that indicate it and use detailed reasoning to verify their assumptions, whereas others show less sensitivity. Some patients with language deficits can convey information about pain with help from staff; others may be able to lean how to use tools that are designed to capitalize on their strengths. It was concluded that the psychological and contextual factors that influence pain should be considered in greater depth, that better education of staff would raise awareness of pain and the regular use of assessment instruments targeted to the specific needs of patients would improve care.
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Published date: 2004
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Local EPrints ID: 465462
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/465462
PURE UUID: 426eaee2-a874-4258-b405-a806da5b2574
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Date deposited: 05 Jul 2022 01:10
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 20:11
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Author:
Diana Jackson
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