Reply To: Pain Scoring – are we all doing this regularly?

Pain scoring should be the 5th vital parameter. There has to be a recognition of strengths and weaknesses of pain scoring though – stoic patients, anxious patients etc. Also, most of the scoring validation is done on specific scenarios so doesn’t necessarily extrapolate as expected.

Still, scoring is vital and I try to always re-do it 15 to 30 min after analgesia is given to ensure it’s working.

Sometimes I also work on the principle if it’s a painful condition i.e. pancreatitis the patient is painful so, even if the score is lower than expected, give analgesia.

Now I’m on my soap box – it’s essential to understand the pathophysiology of pain and how pain meds works to ensure there’s good coverage with minimal side effects.

Could go on forever about this.