Building the Future of Pain Management in Physical Therapy
Purpose: To describe recommendations for pre-licensure pain education for physical therapists developed collaboratively between the American Physical Therapy Association (APTA) and the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP).
Methods and/or Description of Project: There is highly variable pain education in entry-level curricula across healthcare disciplines, including physical therapy. As part of the Global Year for Excellence in Pain Education, the IASP revised recommendations for pre-licensure physical therapy education to advance the science and management of pain. Improving pain management is paramount especially given the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommendations for nonpharmacological pain management as frontline treatment and the recently published National Pain Strategy that emphasizes self-management and nonpharmacological therapy. The APTA and IASP are partnering to promote these pain education initiatives into physical therapy curricula.
Results/Outcomes: IASP Immediate Past President Judith Turner will discuss the global burden of pain, the opioid crisis, and the importance of physical therapist in helping people with pain while emphasizing their role as frontline providers. Debra Gordon, the leader of the IASP core curricula revision process, will discuss the development and changes of the physical therapy curriculum and core competencies for pain. Drs. Bement and Bishop, leaders in physical therapy pain education, will discuss integration of the guidelines into entry-level physical therapy curricula.
Conclusions/Relevance to the conference theme: The collaborative efforts between APTA and IASP in promoting the integration of state-of-the-art knowledge of pain and its treatment in physical therapy curricula will further the ability of physical therapists to play an essential role in treating acute and chronic pain problems. This initiative is of critical public health importance given the global burden of pain and the U.S. opioid crisis.