COLLEGE NEWS PAIN MANAGEMENT CLINIC
Pain science now accepts that chronic pain is more than just an unpleasant sensation; it’s an experience that includes thoughts, emotions and behaviours. A large body of research evidence states that by helping people to change the ways that they think about pain, we can alter emotional and behavioural responses to it. These findings have in part led to the AECC introducing our own pain management clinic with the aim to help people cope with their pain in a more positive way.
The clinic is the brainchild of Pat Partington, Senior Lecturer in psychology, and was set up between himself and Neil Osborne, AECC’s Director of Clinic. This new pain management clinic is led by Anna Franklin (Senior Clinical Tutor) and much like the main AECC chiropractic teaching clinic, the service is co-delivered by AECC interns and staff. As the service is specialised and uses techniques such as motivational interviewing, hypnotherapy and cognitive behavioural therapy, clinic interns were given the opportunity to complete further training with Dr Partington. The result of this extra training led to a number of students being externally certified by a professional body to enable them to deliver the service.
Anna Franklin, the clinic lead for the service suggested that: “Most chronic pain states involve the psychology of pain behaviour and whilst most practitioners have been instinctively dealing with these things by modifying their approaches to suit different patients, this new service will help people via a more structured approach.”
The ultimate aim is to provide each patient with tools and techniques that they can use for themselves in managing their own pain condition on a long-term basis.
A STUDENT PERSPECTIVE - IRMA LUKKIEN
“The pain management clinic is in its early stages. At the moment, there are a few of us seeing patients for pain management. I did Pat’s course a few years back and I’m very happy that I did. Together with Pat’s lectures in college I feel like it’s very useful - it allows me to give patients who suffer from chronic pain the little extra that they need and don’t get anywhere else.
Psychology plays a major role in our work as chiropractors and we cannot ignore it. Patients who develop chronic pain have often seen many other doctors and at the time they come and see you
as a chiropractor, I believe you have a duty to make them understand why and how they have gotten to this stage, and what to do about it.
I am seeing one of my regular chiropractic patients for hypnotherapy sessions. She struggles with chronic back pain, stress and sleeping problems. After two sessions, she was able to think much more positively and she now sleeps through most nights - and this makes her back feel a lot better. She now only needs to see me every three weeks, whereas before she came in every week.”
9
COLLEGE NEWS
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24