Relieving Pain in America is a new report by the National Academy of Science’s Institute of Medicine. The introduction to the report describes the report as follows:
Relieving Pain in America assesses the state of the science regarding pain research, care, and education and offers a blueprint for developing a population-level strategy to increase awareness about pain and its treatments. The report asserts that the National Center for Health Statistics, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), and other government agencies, and private organizations should accelerate the collection of data on pain incidence, prevalence, and treatments. Additionally, training programs for dentists, nurses, physicians, psychologists, and other health professionals should include pain education in their curricula and promote interdisciplinary learning.
Successful treatment, management, and prevention of pain, requires an integrated approach that responds to all the factors that influence pain. Government agencies, healthcare providers, healthcare professional associations, educators, patient advocacy groups, and public and private funders of health care must collaborate to address the issue of pain in America.