Pain Services

Chronic Pain Program

The outpatient Chronic Pain Clinic offers an interdisciplinary approach to treating children and adolescents. Among the conditions treated are headaches, complex regional pain syndrome, neuropathic pain, fibromyalgia, back pain, and abdominal pain.

Goals

The goals of the treatment program are to help patients:

• Deal with pain more effectively
• Maintain function
• Stay in school or return to school
• Improve their quality of life

A Team Approach

The treatment team is led by a physiatrist who specializes in pediatric rehabilitation medicine. Additionally, most patients  are evaluated by one of our dedicated chronic pain psychologists and by our physical therapist. There is a dedicated case manager -- a nurse practitioner -- who works with the team on the plan of care and evaluates effectiveness, compliance and any other case management needs. The initial medical assessments for new patients are done on Thursday afternoons. The visit will be approximately two to three hours. as patients are evaluated by our integrative medicine team. The evaluations with the psychology team and physical therapist will be scheduled for a later date.

Plan of Care

The plan of care is written after seeing each new patient. The family, patient and referring physician will receive a copy. The family and patient agree to comply with the plan and sign a contract stating so.

Treatment plans will be approximately eight to 16 weeks, depending on the needs of the patient. The team will meet weekly to discuss progress. The follow-up visit will be on Thursday afternoons and last 30 minutes.

Treatment Strategies

• Integrative medicine
• Aid in the management of depression and anxiety
• Cognitive behavioral therapy
• Biofeedback – Assisted Relaxation
• Physical therapy
• Individualized physical activity plan