Living with persistent pain: A narrative analysis on supportive factor
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Service users' narratives on enablers of positive outcomes to living alongside persistent pain.
IRAS ID
332203
Contact name
Gabriela Ramos Rodriguez
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Bangor University
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 1 months, 30 days
Research summary
Welsh Government recommendations on care provision towards persistent pain advise the use of self-management plans, focusing on improving physical functioning, psychological and spiritual wellbeing, and social connectedness (Welsh Government, 2019). To provide this, most pain management services in Wales offer Pain Management Programmes (PMP), which are grounded on evidence-based strategies proven to be effective in supporting people with persistent pain, such as activity, mood management, mindfulness practice, and graded exposure exercise. Despite following evidence-based practice, it is still unclear what factors within the PMP lead to better outcomes following therapeutic interventions. Being able to identify which factors do people who complete the PMP attribute to having made a positive impact to their management of persistent pain may help inform current provision and assist professionals in estimating people’s readiness to start the programme, and/or find ways to support those who are not.
This study will aim to address this question by interviewing former service users who have completed the PMP in North Wales Central Pain Management Service, BCUHB. The study will use a qualitative methodology to understand their narratives of what has made a positive difference to their experience of persistent pain.
To meet eligibility criteria, participants will need to be over the age of 18, and feel that there have been positive changes in how they live with persistent pain pre- to post- finishing the PMP. To be considered as having finished the programme, participants will need to have been present throughout six out of the eight sessions of the programme. The interviews will take place online, on the phone, or face-to-face in Abergele’s Pain Management Service in accordance to participants’ choice. Participation will involve answering some demographic questions and a single narrative inducing question. Whilst there will be no time limits, interviews are estimated to last 1-2 hours.REC name
London - London Bridge Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
23/PR/1005
Date of REC Opinion
10 Oct 2023
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion