An estimated 60 million Americans live with chronic pain, a condition that is more prevalent among the elderly. As the 75 million Baby Boomers move toward retirement, more and more Americans are expected to have untreated or undertreated pain. Left untreated or undertreated, individuals suffering from chronic pain become high utilizers of healthcare services to address their pain. Disease and case management programs that address chronic pain can reduce this often excessive healthcare utilization, while improving the quality of life for those suffering from chronic pain.

Listen to pre-conference comments from Marilee Donovan and Cheryl Pacella.

During Managing the Chronic Pain Patient: Strategies to Improve Quality of Life and Reduce Excessive Healthcare Utilization, a 90-minute webinar on CD-ROM, two industry experts described the key features and outcomes of their organization’s chronic pain management programs.

Marilee I. Donovan, Ph.D., R.N., regional pain management coordinator, Kaiser Permanente Northwest, and Cheryl Pacella, D.N.P., R.N., performance improvement advisor at MassPro, a performance improvement organization, provided the inside details on their organization's efforts to improve pain management, including:

• Identifying and stratifying patients with chronic pain;
• Creating a consistent approach to pain assessment using standard tools and questions;
• Developing patient education and self-management techniques to meet patient needs;
• Creating partnerships with primary care practices to address the needs of the chronic pain patient through clinical guidelines;
• Combining pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment modalities for effective management;
• Setting up pain management programs to treat beyond the symptoms; and
• Reporting on outcomes and results from chronic pain management programs.

WHO WILL BENEFIT FROM THIS CONFERENCE?

CEOs, medical directors, disease management directors, managers and coordinators, health plan executives, care management nurses, business development and strategic planning directors and physician practice leaders.

Available in four formats

• CD-ROM for computer play
• CD-ROM for stereo play
• On Demand version accessible online
• Synchronized video recording and transcript

Please note the stereo version ships as two CD-ROMs, whereas the .mp3 version ships as one CD-ROM.

ABOUT OUR PANELIST:

Marilee Donovan

Marilee Donovan notes that pain self-management is highly effective, as the patient is the only one who truly knows how he or she feels at all times.

Marilee Donovan, R.N., Ph.D., is the regional coordinator of pain management and a clinical nurse specialist for Kaiser Permanente Northwest in Portland, Ore. Donovan joined Kaiser Permanente in 1994 and co-founded its regional pain management program in 1995. In 2002, the program received Kaiser Permanente’s annual Vohs Award for Quality, which recognizes exceptional efforts to address challenging quality-of-care and service issues that are transferable to other areas of the organization.

Donovan’s responsibilities at Kaiser Permanente cap more than 40 years of experience that include practice as an oncology nurse specialist; academic and supervisory roles at five schools of nursing, and a hospital administrator. Through all of these responsibilities, she has maintained a clinical practice and research interest in improving pain management.

Donovan has held faculty and supervisory positions at undergraduate and graduate levels at five schools of nursing, including the graduate program in oncology nursing at the University of Pittsburgh School of Nursing; Rush University College of Nursing in Chicago; Oregon Health Sciences University (OHSU) School of Nursing, Portland Ore; and the University of Portland in Portland, Ore. She is currently a guest faculty member of the College of Nursing, Washington State University, Vancouver, Wash. She also served as OHSU’s associate hospital director from 1990 to 1993.

In 1978 she founded Cancer Care Consultants, remaining with that organization until 1987. She was a member of the board of directors of the American Pain Society from 1992 to 1994 and a consultant and faculty member for the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations’ committee on pain standards from 2000 to 2002.

Donovan has authored five books, contributed chapters to 16 books and written more than 30 articles related to pain. She is a frequent lecturer on the subject, having presented more than 150 papers. She is currently conducting research in the areas of outcomes evaluation for pain management and factors associated with positive outcomes of opioid therapy for chronic pain.

Donovan holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Marquette University, a Master in Oncology Nursing and a PhD in Education from the University of Pittsburgh.

Cheryl Pacella

Patients' lack of knowledge of medication and treatment modalities creates significant barriers to adequate pain control, says Cheryl Pacella.

Cheryl Pacella, DNP(c) MSN, CNS-BC is a performance improvement advisor at Masspro. She works closely with home care agencies throughout Massachusetts to assist them in successfully improving patient outcomes. In her role, Pacella has also helped to lead a collaborative of five home care agencies committed to improving the transition of care from hospital to home care.

Pacella has more than 18 years of home care experience. Prior to joining Masspro, she worked for 16 years at the Visiting Nurse Association of Boston as a quality improvement coordinator, clinical educator, and patient service manager. Pacella has lectured and was a clinical instructor at Massachusetts Bay Community College and Curry College.

Pacella is a Doctor of Nursing Practice candidate at Regis College. She has a Certificate of Advanced Graduate Study in Healthcare Administration from Simmons College, a Master of Science in Nursing from Salem State College, and an Associate Degree in Nursing from Laboure College. She is a registered nurse in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.