Pain education is the structured teaching and learning process focused on understanding pain mechanisms, assessment, communication, and management strategies for patients, caregivers, students, or health professionals [1][2][3][4]. It includes evidence-based content on biological, psychological, and social dimensions of pain, distinctions between acute and chronic pain, and principles of pharmacological and non-pharmacological care [1][2]. Pain education is characterized by goal-directed instruction that aims to improve pain literacy, support informed decision-making, reduce maladaptive beliefs, and strengthen self-management and clinical practice competencies [2][3][4]. In healthcare and educational contexts, the term refers to formal, planned educational interventions about pain, rather than incidental advice or general health information without explicit pain-focused learning objectives [1][2][3][4].
- pain education
- pain literacy
- chronic pain management
- biopsychosocial pain model
References
- International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP). IASP Curriculum Outline on Pain for Medicine; IASP: Washington, DC. Available online: https://www.iasp-pain.org/education/curricula/.
- World Health Organization. WHO Guidelines on the Management of Chronic Pain in Children; WHO: Geneva, 2020. Available online: https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240017870.
- Adriaan Louw; Kory Zimney; Emilio J. Puentedura; Ina Diener; The efficacy of pain neuroscience education on musculoskeletal pain: A systematic review of the literature. Physiother. Theory Pract. 2016, 32, 332-355, 10.1080/09593985.2016.1194646.
- James A. Viti; Stanley V. Paris; Use of Multifidus Isometric for a Patient with Acute Neck Pain: A Case Report. J. Man. Manip. Ther. 2003, 11, 103-109, 10.1179/106698103790826374.