Critical Care Nurses’ Roles in Pain Management in the ICU

Critical Care Nurses’ Roles in Pain Management in the ICU
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Critical Care Nurses’ Roles in Pain Management in the ICU
Pain is a significant problem for critical care patients necessitating the establishment of clear guidelines to guide nurse pain management in ICU residents. According to Acello (2007), pain management refers to the elimination or control of pain sources in critical care patients. The nurse’s role in pain management begins from its recognition and assessment to the determination and evaluation of the most appropriate mode of intervention. Monitoring patient pain is one of the most essential routines and responsibilities of critical care nurses as it involves both objective and subjective (observations and reports) to ensure the quality of patient care to allow for the most appropriate management plan (Puntillo, 2016). The principles of pain management and nurses’ knowledge and skills act as a guide to the roles and expectations of nurses during patient care. The scope of nurses’ roles in pain management range from assessing, monitoring, and intervention patients' progress with pain. Specific roles in all the aspects of the management plan outline the accountabilities for nurses to improve quality patient care.
1 Nurses' duties during patient pain assessment
Puntillo (2016) explains pain assessment as the evaluation of pain intensity and behaviors of patients in critical care. it is the initial stage in pain management and comprises the analysis of various aspects including the nature, source, and the personal context of the pain (Oregon State Board of Nursing, 2015). In terms of the personal context, the nurse is supposed to understand how the pain impacts the life routines and quality of the resident as well as how they perceive and express pain. There are various regulations and guidelines on how nurses can appropriately assess patients depending on the components i.e. nature, source, and context. Nurses are expected to conduct regular assessments under an established guideline and format which should be insistent and parallel to the unit, hospital, and medical procedures (Wells et al., 2008). Wells et al. (2008) also note that nurses are expected to follow up on the patient history with the illness and medication as well as other underlying conditions for an accurate and comprehensive assessment, to ensure the appropriate interventions. Some of the initiatives that nurses can adopt include talking with family members and interdisciplinary coordination.
The main reason nurses are expected to conduct a comprehensive assessment is to determine the specific medical care and treatment. Some of the common tools nurses use for pain assessment include the linear numeric rating scale (NRS), the Behavioral Pain Scale, and the Critical Care Pain Observation Tool (Puntillo, 2016). Some of the decisions nurses are supposed to make during the assessment include the time of administration, choice of drug, and the dosage of the necessary analgesics (Acello, 2007). The analysis of the patient and history is necessary because nurses are supposed to develop and implement and personalized pain management plan, derived from evidence ...