NTI Interview - Pain Control: June Oliver, MSN, CNS

Managing our patient's pain is a paramount concern for all nurses. AllNurses staff recently attended NTI in Houston and interviewed June Oliver, MSN, CNS from Swedish Covenant Hospital in Chicago. She is an eminent pain management specialist who has authored several articles on pain management for patients with substance abuse disorders. According to the American Society for Pain Management Nursing (ASPMN); "Failure to identify and treat the concurrent conditions of pain and substance use disorders will compromise the ability to treat either condition effectively. Barriers to caring for these patients include stigmatization, misconceptions, and limited access to providers skilled in these two categories of disorders."

In an article from the ASPMN, Ms Oliver states: "In 2010, an estimated 22.6 million Americans (8.9% of the population) aged 12 or older reported using an illicit substance in the previous month. Approximately 7 million of these individuals met diagnostic criteria for a drug use disorder, and an estimated 5.1 million persons reported they had used prescription pain relievers in a nonmedical or non-prescribed manner. Sixty-six percent of those individuals obtained these medications from a friend or relative, and nearly 80% of those friends or family members had each obtained their medications from a single prescriber."

Drug abuse is prevalent in our society and we, as concerned nurses must use multiple resources to help our patients. In the interview, Ms Oliver provides some concrete means to achieve this goal.