Rehab for back pain patients

IRISH BACK PAIN patients are being invited to take part in a new rehabilitation trial which aims to prevent long-term disability.

The Centre for Pain Research at NUI Galway is currently recruiting patients with back pain to take part in the Pain Disability Prevention Programme (PDP) trial, which is funded by the HSE.

The study offers patients with back pain the opportunity to avail of 10 sessions with a clinical psychologist trained in pain management.

Sessions are free of charge and will take place in counties Galway, Donegal, Sligo, Mayo, Limerick and Cork. GPs and physiotherapists in these counties are being encouraged to refer suitable patients to the study.

Miriam Raftery, researcher at the Centre for Pain Research, says she is interested in hearing from patients who have back pain for no longer than 12 months and are either off work or on reduced work hours due to their pain.

The sessions will focus on active rehabilitation, instruction in a range of pacing techniques, cognitive therapy to help identify negative thinking patterns and the development of effective challenges, stretching and exercising to improve physical function.

Raftery points out that people suffering from back pain are usually on a waiting list for years before they finally get to a hospital pain clinic and have access to psychology-based pain management. However, there are known risk factors which increase a patient’s chance of going on to develop chronic pain and disability and these patients need to be given strategies to prevent this, she says.

“We know that a combination of psychological and physical therapies provided at the early stages of back pain are beneficial, particularly for people at risk of long-term disability. However, multidisciplinary rehabilitation services are often only accessible via specialised hospital-based pain management teams. We aim to trial an earlier access route to psychological pain management at a local level.”

She says many people find that a combination of cognitive and physical rehabilitation like the PDP programme enables them to take back control of their lives, to do more and feel better.

HSE psychologists are attached to the trial in each of the areas where it is running with appointments taking place locally for patients. In Limerick, Cork and Galway, appointments take place in the city, while in Donegal, appointments are held in Letterkenny and Buncrana. For patients in the Mayo region, appointments take place in Swinford, and in Sligo appointments are being held in Sligo town.

All patients can access physiotherapy and other support services as usual while involved in the trial.

For further information, contact Miriam Raftery, Centre for Pain Research, NUI Galway; miriam.raftery@nuigalway.ie, 091-495830 or see nuigalway.ie/pdp

GPs interested in referring suitable patients to the trial can also contact this number