Pain education in nursing: influencing change in the United Kingdom

ABSTRACT
The importance of effective pain education for nurses and other healthcare professionals has long been recognised by national and international bodies with a specialist interest in pain. A lack of knowledge, skills and competence can negatively impact on the patient’s pain experience and the nursing care they receive. This article explores pain education provided in the United Kingdom (UK), reflecting on the pre-registration education leading to qualified and registered practitioners. Also, the opportunities for post-registration, postgraduate learning are discussed including developing specialist or advanced practice. At each of these levels, there are challenges and these are highlighted along with the exciting initiatives that will continue to influence change in the UK.
Kewwords: pain management, pain education, United Kingdom

RIASSUNTO
L’importanza di una buona formazione sul dolore degli infermieri e di tutti gli operatori sanitari è da tempo riconosciuta dagli organismi nazionali e internazionali dedicati allo studio e alla cura del dolore. La mancanza di conoscenze, abilità e competenze può influire negativamente sull’esperienza di dolore di assistenza infermieristica che riceve il paziente. Questo articolo esamina la formazione sul dolore prevista nel Regno Unito, che si riflette sul livello di istruzione pre-iscrizione che porta poi alla preparazione di professionisti qualificati e riconosciuti. Vengono inoltre discusse le opportunità di formazione post-laurea, compreso la creazione di specialisti o di pratiche avanzate. Ciascuno di questi livelli presenta delle sfide e queste sfide vengono messe in luce insieme alle interessanti iniziative che continueranno ad influenzare un cambiamento nel Regno Unito per la cura del dolore.
Parole chiave: formazione infermieristica sul dolore, Regno Unito, trattamento del dolore

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The provision of pain education in undergraduate medical schools across Europe: the Italian perspective

A poor understanding of pain medicine by doctors and nurses significantly hinders optimal pain management. Limited evidence suggests that undergraduate pain education in medical schools is often inadequate, but this has not been comprehensively assessed in Italy. The Advancing the Provision of Pain Education and Learning (APPEAL) study, guided by an expert taskforce of pain and education specialists under the leadership of the European Pain Federation (EFIC®), is a Europe-wide review of pain education in all undergraduate medical schools in 15 countries. These findings have informed recommendations by the APPEAL Taskforce on improving undergraduate pain education. Here, we compare data on pain education between Italian medical schools and those in other European countries.
Abstract, 37th Congress of the Italian Association for the Study of Pain, Stresa, May 22-24, 2014.

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