EFFECTS OF PAIN MANAGEMENT COMBINED WITH COMPLEMENTARY CARE PROGRAM ON ACUTE PAIN AND PHYSIOLOGICAL RESPONSES IN PATIENTS WITH CARDIAC SURGERY

Abstract

The aim of this study was to examine effect of the pain management combined with complementary care program (PCP) on acute pain and physiological responses in patients with cardiac surgery. The PCP program based on the Symptom management model (Dodd, 2001) and implemented at Ramathibodi hospital, Bangkok, Thailand. Seventy cardiac surgery participants were studied with matched pairs and random assignment to the intervention or control group. The intervention consisted of acute pain experience adjustment, acute pain management strategies, and evaluation of acute pain management. Testing was conducted at post-operative day 1, 2, and 3 on both an experimental and a control groups. Data was analyzed by repeated measures MANOVA and repeated measure ANOVA The results indicated that the participants in the experimental group had lower mean pain score (p < .05) and that were also significantly decreased during post-operative day 1, 2, and 3, respectively (p < .05). Regard to physiological responses, the experimental group had higher mean oxygen saturation (p < .05). These results suggest that implementing this program at cardiac centers would result in better control of acute pain after cardiac surgery.