Managing Pain in the Primary Care Setting

The purpose of this activity is to increase physician knowledge regarding treating chronic pain patients. In order to provide the highest quality of patient care, physicians must know the tools and resources available in treating this complex patient population. Providers should understand the mechanisms and types of pain as well as become familiar with the classes of medications, physical modalities, and interventions utilized to treat chronic pain.

At the conclusion of this educational activity, the participants should be better able to effectively:

• Discuss the essential neurophysiology and neuropharmacology as a basis for the selection of methods to medically manage chronic pain
• Discuss the use of complementary and alternative medicine for the management of multiple chronic pain conditions
• Distinguish between migraine and other types of headache to guide treatments with the appropriate pharmacotherapuetic intervention
• Discuss the burden of managing adults with low back pain in the United States within the context of the healthcare delivery system, economy and workforce
• Describe the contemporary issues regarding the role of select therapeutic interventions within the scope of physical therapy practice, including patient education, thermal modalities, electrotherapy, mechanical spinal traction, manual therapy, and exercise therapy in the management of adults with chronic low back pain complaints
• Define the components of monitoring practices in the use of controlled therapies for chronic pain including written consent, urine toxicology, and pharmacology monitoring as guided by new opioid prescribing laws and rules.
• Describe common methods of diversion and recognize red flags.
• Identify signs of addiction and appropriate treatment options utilizing community resources.

Predicted changes in practice as a result of participating in this activity may include the improved ability to:

• Utilize new legislation and safe prescribing practices to shape office policies for the treatment of chronic pain in primary care setting.
• Develop treatment plans incorporating multi-modal practices including physical therapy and complimentary medicine for the management of chronic pain states.
• Manage and treat painful states with medications based on neurophysiology and neuropharmacology principles previously discussed.

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the accreditation requirements and policies of the Accreditation Council for Continuing Medical Education (ACCME) through the joint providership of Tulane University Health Sciences Center and CrescentHealth Consulting. Tulane University Health Sciences Center is accredited by the ACCME to provide continuing medical education for physicians.

Tulane University Health Sciences Center designates this live educational activity for a maximum of 10 AMA PRA Category 1 Credits ™. Physicians should claim only the credit commensurate with the extent of their participation in the activity.

Tulane University Health Sciences Center and CrescentHealth Consulting present this activity for educational purposes only and do not endorse any product, content of presentation or exhibit. Participants are expected to utilize their own expertise and judgment while engaged in the practice of medicine. The content of the presentations is provided solely by presenters who have been selected because of their recognized expertise.

This activity has been planned and implemented in accordance with the ACCME® Accreditation Requirements and the IACET 1-2018 Standard to ensure balance, independence, objectivity, and scientific rigor.  All individuals responsible for content, regardless of role(s), are required to document financial relationships or the absence of relationships with commercial interests, and all potential conflicts of interest must be resolved prior to the activity.  Disclosure of off-label, experimental or investigational use of drugs or devices must also be made known to the audience.

This conference is designed to address the issues of competence in the following areas:

ACGME/ABMS Competencies

Patient Care and Procedural Skills, Medical Knowledge, Practice Based Learning Improvement, Interpersonal and Communication Skills, Professionalism and Systems- based Practice.

Institute of Medicine Competencies

Provide Patient Centered Care, Work in Interdisciplinary Teams, Employ Evidence-based Practice.

Interprofessional Education Collaborative Competencies

Values/Ethics for Interprofessional Practice, Roles/Responsibilities, Interprofessional Communication and Teams and Teamwork.

Tulane University, Center for Continuing Education has been accredited as an authorized provider by the International Association for Continuing Education and Training (IACET).  Tulane University, Center for Continuing Education is authorized by IACET to offer 1 CEU for this program.

This activity for 10 contact hours is provided by the Education Resource Center of Tulane University Hospital, New Orleans, LA.  The Education Resource Center is approved by the LSBN C.E. Provider #5.

Nurses wishing to receive credit must attend the training in its entirety. Signing in and out at the registration desk is required. Partial credit cannot be awarded. Certificates will be disseminated electronically upon receipt of activity evaluation.

The following course was reviewed by the Louisiana Physical Therapy Board and awarded 10 contact hours for 2019 in the clinical category.