Nurses push for better pain management education as demand increases

Primary and community care workloads have increased because of a shortage of specialist pain services, according to nurses speaking at the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) Congress have warned.

The annual event, held in Liverpool last week, also heard that nurses ‘lack confidence’ in pain management, highlighting need for improved education.

Several speakers discussed access to specialist pain services and the role of the registered nurse in caring for those in pain – warning that, due to a ‘lack of specialist pain services’, there has been an increase in general practice appointments and community referrals.

Proposing the matter for discussion, chair of RCN’s Pain and Palliative Care Forum Martin Galligan said access to specialist pain services across the UK was ‘inconsistent, inequitable, and inadequate’ despite chronic pain affecting around half the population.

‘Pain is not just a personal burden, it is a national one,’ he said. ‘It is responsible for 40% of sickness absences and around half of all GP appointments.

‘The financial cost of this runs into the billions.’

North West London nurse Regina Mambu-Small added that she has seen an increase in GP referrals to the community addiction service she works for.

‘Because of lack of a lot of specialist pain services, we have seen an increase in GP referrals in relation to people holding pain,’ she said.

Ms Mambu-Small called for treatment plans and specialist services across the UK.

As well as calls for specialist pain services, proposer Mr Galligan highlighted the need for better nurse education.

He said: ‘Evidence shows that many nurses lack the confidence and knowledge they need to support people living with pain.

‘Misconceptions or fears around pain in education is often absent or minimal in pre-registration programmes.’

He pointed to a review of 71 undergraduate courses in UK which suggested ‘pain did not feature anywhere in the curriculum’.

‘This inconsistency continues into postgraduate education. Access to specialist pain education across UK is highly variable, fragmented, and often dependent on where you live and employer support rather than patient need and demand,’ added Mr Galligan.

‘This places nurses with an impossible position expected to deliver high quality pain care without the education, support, or access to specialist services.’

Greater Manchester nurse John Allison explicitly called for mandated education.

‘It’s very sad that many nurses do not feel confident enough to access [specialist pain services],’ he said.

‘This is not a failure of individuals, it’s a systemic failure. We need mandatory high‑quality training, from pre‑registration to advanced practice.’

This was one of several debates which took place in Liverpool last week, with nurses voting for RCN council to act upon attempts to ‘undermine’ advanced nursing practice, to tackle misinformation, protect nursing education, and create a programme to help build the confidence of nursing staff in addressing racism.