“They think you’re trying to get the drug”: Qualitative investigation of chronic pain patients’ health care experiences during the opioid overdose epidemic in Canada

Abstract

Choinière (2021): "They think you're trying to get the drug": Qualitative investigation of chronic pain patients' health care experiences during the opioid overdose epidemic in Canada, Canadian Journal of Pain,

Conversations About Opioids: Impact of the Opioid Overdose Epidemic on Social Interactions for People Who Live With Chronic Pain

“…Several recent studies reported unintended consequences of the opioid overdose epidemic and related policy changes on the management of chronic pain, such as difficulties accessing treatment (Antoniou et al, 2019;Lagisetty et al, 2019;Sinha et al, 2019) as well as growing stigmatizing attitudes from health care providers (Antoniou et al, 2019;Dassieu et al, 2021). These problems could intensify the sense of powerlessness among patients regarding their pain management (Antoniou et al, 2019;Buchman et al, 2016Buchman et al, , 2017.…”

“…We targeted participants who reported impacts of the opioid overdose epidemic's media coverage and/or concerns about other peoples' views on their pain and opioid use. Details about the study inclusion criteria and participants' characteristics can be found in Dassieu et al (2021).…”

“…Participants were first asked to describe their pain condition, treatments, and relief strategies. They were then asked about their relationships with their personal and professional circles, as well as their health care providers (results about health care experiences are reported in Dassieu et al (2021), including their perceptions of changes in these relationships due to the opioid overdose epidemic.…”

“…Conversations about opioids also need to take place during clinical encounters. As many chronic pain patients treated with opioids face increased disbelief from clinicians and difficulties obtaining treatment (Antoniou et al, 2019;Lagisetty et al, 2019), it is critical to reduce stigma in clinical interactions (Dassieu et al, 2021), and to support clinicians in adequately assessing opioid risks as well as addressing patients' and families' concerns about these powerful medications.…”

Persistent Spinal Pain Syndrome: New Terminology for a New Era

“…12 Many patients whose pain is not substantially reduced by low back surgeries, irrespective of the reason, have few treatment options other than chronic opioid therapy. That there exists a copious body of literature demonstrating that opioid reliance exacerbates the stigmatization and marginalization [13][14][15][16][17] of these patients is not surprising. Society uses a number of unflattering terms for those who are opioid-dependent, irrespective of whether they are medical or recreational users.…”