In the past most patients in chronic pain were managed by primary care providers. As our understanding of chronic pain increased and the development of new treatment and management options arouse, more physicians immerged that specialized solely in the management of pain.
These new relationship dynamic between the patient, the primary care provider and pain specialist has changed how we treat chronic pain in the 21th century.
Management of chronic pain has taken a multidisciplinary and multi-treatment approach with regards to chronic pain management.
The relationship you develop between yourself and your pain specialist is a very valuable relationship to the success in the management of your pain.
If you do not already see a pain specialist, it is important for you to discuss with your primary care physician if having a pain specialist as part of your treatment team is a reasonable next step.
Conclusion
Thank you for taking the time to finish this tutorial. When I created this tutorial I tried to address all the issues that my own pain patients repeatedly asked, as well as the issues and topics that we all should be mindful of when living with chronic pain. This tutorial would not be possible without the generous input from the faculty at the UCSD Center for Pain Medicine in La Jolla, CA and at Coastal Pain & Spinal Diagnostics in Carlsbad, CA. Also special thanks to Dr. Erin Grimes in the Department of Psychology in La Jolla, CA for all her help. Please send me your feedback and if I can be of help in any way please feel free to contact me.
Sincerely,
“Dr. Yogi”
Dr. Yogesh V. Patel