Implementing a Paradigm Shift: Incorporating Pain Management Competencies into Pre-Licensure Curricula

Abstract

Broad questions about how to incorporate competencies into pre-licensure curricula, for all health provider pre-licensure programs, including how to assess competency across individuals and how to teach in ways that emphasize the demonstration of conceptual learning, remain unanswered. This article reviews how the use of competencies creates historical context for a shift from teaching to learning and concludes with suggestions and exemplars in applying core competencies for pain management in pre-licensure programs.

An Interprofessional Consensus of Core Competencies for Prelicensure Education in Pain Management: Curriculum Application for Nursing

“…Competency-based education shifts the focus of the learner’s perspective by transferring assessment from what has been successfully taught to what has been successfully learned (Arwood et al, 2014; Gordon, 2010). The pain management core competencies for prelicensure education (Fishman et al, 2013) were developed using multiple levels of learning designed to assess the performance of clinical concepts while also considering the foundational knowledge that is specific to each profession.…”

“…Competencies should be aligned with the stated objectives of a course and can be measured through methods such as oral or written examinations, case-based learning activities, observed clinical encounters, and reflective essays, with observed behavior being the focus for evaluating clinical competencies (Gordon, 2010). To assess competency, multiple measurement points of varying complexity should assess the student in a range of environments and with diverse cases (Arwood et al, 2014). …”

Relationship Between Using Clinical Practice Guidelines for Pain Treatment and Physicians' Training and Attitudes Toward Patients and the Effects on Patient Care

“…The lack of use of these guidelines is a modifiable factor, which should be encouraged during both university education and specialized training, primarily among the youngest physicians because the implementation of CPGs is not only a practice recommended for clinical outcome optimization but also a healthcare system requirement that can facilitate decision making for the best outcomes. Arwood et al stated that, traditionally, pain management for beginning practitioners is conceptualized as a knowledge‐based content category rather than as a set of learned competencies in which students must demonstrate proficiency. Likewise, Zhang et al concluded that an inadequate knowledge of pain management is a key obstacle to proper pain management.…”

Interdisciplinary Pain Education: Moving From Discipline-Specific to Collaborative Practice

“…The literature has shown that the current state of pain management education in schools of nursing and medicine, as well pharmacy programs, is often inadequate. Although prelicensure programs recognize the importance of learners' ability to assess and manage pain, the content often is focused on retaining knowledge versus demonstrating competency to manage pain (Arwood et al, 2015;Reeves et al, 2008). Future modifications of the OPPT program will include a basic review of pain pathophysiology embedded within case studies to learn about types of pain and recommended management techniques.…”