Paediatric Pain Assessment and Perioperative Pain Management: A Survey of Practice in Teaching Hospitals in the Two Provinces of Pakistan.

Abstract

Objective: To map the practice of paediatric perioperative pain assessment and management among consultant anaesthetists working in teaching institutions in the two provinces of Pakistan.

Study design: A cross-sectional survey. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Anaesthesiology, Teaching institutions of Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), Pakistan, from January to October 2022.

Methodology: A questionnaire was designed to determine the participants' practices about perioperative pain assessment and management. It consisted of 26 questions that included participants' demographic data and questions about their paediatric practice.

Results: A total of 152 responses were received (response rate 76%). Most participants (n = 84, 55.3%) had a two-year diploma in anaesthesiology, while 38.2% had a four-year diploma. Additionally, 66.4% worked at public sector hospitals and 28.3% at private hospitals. Only 66% of respondents used paediatric pain scales for pain assessment in the recovery rooms. Most participants, 72.2%, had no Paediatric Pain Management Guidelines available at their institution. Only 5% had access to 5 analgaesic medications, while 32% had access to only 2 medications for intraoperative pain management.

Conclusion: The practice of anaesthesiologists in these two provinces of Pakistan is highly varied since there is a lack of national guidelines.

Key words: Paediatric anaesthesia, Acute pain, Pain management, Pain measurement, Paediatric pain assessment, Anaesthesia and analgaesia, Survey and questionnaires.