In 2 recent studies, as part of the NOHARM trial, researchers explored the perspectives of patients and nurses on the implementation of a perioperative nonpharmacologic pain care education program.
One study, published in JMIR Nursing, evaluated inpatient nurses’ perceptions of barriers and facilitators to implementing the Healing After Surgery initiative. Healing After Surgery is a program embedded in the electronic health record (EHR) that provides education and support to patients for incorporating nonpharmacologic pain care techniques into their individualized perioperative pain management plans.
The researchers found that the nurses understood the benefits of the program but had difficulty implementing unfamiliar pain care techniques and prioritizing the initiative due to other clinical demands. Read the full report.
In the second study, published in BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, the researchers used semistructured qualitative interviews to explore patients’ experiences participating in the Healing After Surgery initiative. Among other things, they found that patients generally liked the program and felt that it aligned with their beliefs about wellness techniques and concerns about opioids. Read the full article.
NOHARM, an NIH Collaboratory Trial, is a stepped-wedge, cluster randomized trial testing an EHR-embedded, bundled intervention comprised of patient- and clinician-facing decision support components that enable patients to integrate nonpharmacologic pain care into their perioperative management. The study is supported within the NIH Pragmatic Trials Collaboratory by a grant award administered by the National Institute on Aging through the NIH HEAL Initiative.