‘Getting relief from pain is also basic human right’

The mainstream health experts at the Aga Khan University Hospital (AKUH) believe that getting relief from any type of the pain is also a basic human right. They said that despite the existence of enough knowledge and technology in this modern era for pain management, several people still suffer from acute pain.
These experts are of the view that adequate pain treatment can improve the quality of life of patients as well as give clinical resource management a boost, reducing long-term costs of hospital care. To introduce and familiarise the general public with the pain management services available at the Aga Khan Hospital – as part of the Global year against Acute Pain being celebrated between October 2010 and October 2011 – AKUH health experts gathered at a seminar held on Tuesday at AKUH.
Commemorating the global year against acute pain, the AKUH’s pain management experts, highlighted how adequate pain treatment contributes to patient satisfaction and enhanced clinical resource management, while introducing the audience to the 24-hour pain management services available at the AKUH.
 “Acute pain is not a diagnosis, it is a symptom, which is an unpleasant sensory and emotional experience, and pain assessment is the most important component of management” said Dr Robyna Khan, the consultant anaesthetist at the AKUH, while speaking about acute pain management.
Reaffirming Dr Khan’s stance, Dr Gauhar Afshan, consultant anaesthetist and AKUH Head of the Department of Anaesthesia, highlighted how the department works round-the-clock to provide optimum coverage to all postoperative surgical patients using various modalities of pain control including epidural infusions, patient controlled analgesia, continuous neural block and more.
“Our multidisciplinary team comprising anaesthesia and pain specialists, neurologists, neurosurgeons, oncologists, orthopaedic surgeons, psychologists as well as physical therapists, not only offer four pain management clinics per week, but also invest in increasing awareness regarding acute pain management among patients and their families,” said Dr Afshan.
The AKUH has also recently introduced a new outpatient acupuncture clinic for the treatment of chronic pain not responding to treatment. In addition to its outpatient services, AKUH is also providing round-the-clock inpatient chronic pain consultation. “The great challenge for a pain physician is to help his patient revert back to normal life and to be able to perform routine chores without discomfort,” said Dr Mansoor Khan, another consultant anaesthetist at the AKUH, while taking the discussion on chronic pain forward.
“The problems associated with chronic pain not only suppress an individual’s performance, but also adversely affect personal relationships and work related outcomes, which in turn negatively impact society by increasing its economic burden,” he added.
“Chronic pain is a summation of physical and psychological derangements and successful management requires addressing all of its aspects. Combination therapies are more effective than any single approach for maintaining long-term gains,” he said.