You don’t have to be a pain doctor to see pain all around you too. If it is not you, it may be someone close to you, a family member, a friend or a colleague. Humans express pain in many ways. They can say it with words or facial expressions, by sighing, grimacing, crying or y doing the opposite: withdrawing and isolating themselves. Humans also use gestures (such as touching their backs) or exhibit behaviours such as limping and using a cane. We cannot detect pain with a pressure tourniquet, a thermometer or a stethoscope the way traditional medical doctors can take your blood pressure, checking your temperature, listening to your test or seeing something abnormal in your blood tests. We rely on what the patient says, how he/she says it and the kind of behaviours this person displays.
Having said that, a trained eye like mine can “see” pain from far and everywhere. Studies have shown that chronic pain is more prevalent in females, and in people with lower socioeconomic status and education. However, I can assure you that pain does not recognize country of origin, gender, class, income or education. While many patients are in great financial difficulty because pain has robbed them of their ability to earn a living, I have also seen CEOs of major companies, internationally known art dealers, top financiers, prominent lawyers, famous TV hosts (the list goes on) who are independently wealthy and they would give fortunes to get rid of their pain.
If any of the things I say sound familiar and hit a sensitive cord, please make sure you convey the message that chronic pain is a huge problem and must be addressed seriously. Particularly for those who find themselves in the midst of municipal or provincial elections, now is the time for you to ask your MPs pr MPPs what they are intending to do to address the problem of chronic pain.
Angela Mailis Gagnon, MD, MSc, FRCPC(PhysMed)
Director, Comprehensive Pain Program,
Senior Investigator, Krembil Neuroscience Centre
Toronto Western Hospital,
Chair ACTION Ontario http:// www.drangelamailis.com
Keywords: doctors, pain
