Drug-Free Approaches to Pain Management

CE Course Description

Chronic pain impacts millions of individuals negatively. It causes poor outcomes in all life domains including mental health, relationships, employment, and basic household functioning. Chronic pain is positively correlated with anxiety, depression, and addiction. It is essential that anyone working with a patient with chronic pain understands the drug-free approaches to managing and treating chronic pain and utilizes them as much as possible. This reduces the risk of dependency on opioids and the possibility for negative outcomes associated with opioid use. This course reviews 14 different drug-free approaches to supporting patients in reducing or managing their chronic pain. 

Author: Sara Amundson, MSW

CE Course Objectives

1. Explore the impact of chronic pain on all health domains
2. Review 14 ways to manage chronic pain
3. Identify medications used to manage chronic pain and discuss consequences of medication misuse
   
4. Examine the impact that drug-free approaches have on managing pain and patient health through 14 case studies 
5. Describe Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) techniques that can be beneficial for managing chronic pain
   

CE Course Outline

Introduction (5 mins)

1. Overview of Chronic Pain (5 mins)

Section 1: What is Chronic Pain? (30 mins)

1. What causes chronic pain? (5 mins)
2. Impacts of chronic pain (5 mins)
3. Chronic pain medication (5 mins)
4. Case Study 1 (10 mins)
5. Summary (5 mins)

Section 2: Drug-Free Pain Management (80 mins)

1. Introduction (5 mins)
2. Yoga for Pain Management (5 mins)
   1. Overview of yoga techniques (2 mins)
   2. Case Study 1 (3 mins)
3. Physical Therapy for Chronic Pain (5 mins)
   1. Benefits of physical therapy (3 mins)
   2. Case Study 2 (2 mins)
4. Physiotherapy (5 mins)
   1. Physiotherapy approaches and benefits (3 mins)
   2. Case Study 3 (2 mins)
5. Osteopathic Medicine (5 mins)
   1. Role of osteopathic medicine (2 mins)
   2. Case Study 4 (3 mins)
6. Acupuncture (5 mins)
   1. Acupuncture techniques (3 mins)
   2. Case Study 5 (2 mins)
7. Diet Changes for Chronic Pain (10 mins)
   1. Role of diet in pain management (5 mins)
   2. Case Study 6 (5 mins)
8. Hyperbaric Oxygen Chambers (5 mins)
   1. Case Study 7
9. Massage Therapy (5 mins)
   1. Benefits of massage therapy (3 mins)
   2. Case Study 8 (2 mins)
10. Chiropractic Care (5 mins)
    1. Role of chiropractic care (3 mins)
    2. Case Study 9 (2 mins)
11. Meditation (5 mins)
    1. Introduction to meditation techniques (2 mins)
    2. Case Study 10 (3 mins)
12. Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) (5 mins)
    1. Overview of CBT techniques
    2. Case Study 11 (3 mins)
13. Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) (5 mins)
    1. Overview of ACT techniques
    2. Case Study 12 (3 mins)
14. Hydrotherapy (5 mins)
    1. Benefits of hydrotherapy (2 mins)
    2. Case Study 13 (3 mins)
15. Tai Chi (5 mins)
    1. Overview of Tai Chi techniques (2 mins)
    2. Case Study 14 (3 mins)

Conclusion (5 mins)

1. Recap of drug-free pain management options (5 mins)