Chronic Pain Assessment and Brief Intervention

Approximately 20% of adults in the United States are experiencing chronic pain. Individuals with chronic pain have increased rates of mood, anxiety, and substance use disorders, as well as other correlated physical health concerns. The experience of chronic pain can have wide reaching impacts on our patients’ social, vocational, and personal lives. Psychological theories of pain can provide a framework to open conversations with our patients about the emotional, social, and behavioral factors that can affect their pain experience. In this presentation, you will learn about key factors that can influence the experience of chronic pain, and the psychological theories that can be used to improve assessment and guide brief interventions for chronic pain. You will learn specific strategies that you can apply with your patients experiencing chronic pain.

2 hours CE. Recorded video format (non-interactive)

ESTIMATED COURSE LENGTH: 2 hours 

CE CREDITS: 2.00 continuing education/contact hours for social workers, psychologists, counselors, and marriage and family therapists

TARGET AUDIENCE: Mental Health Practitioners

LEVEL OF INSTRUCTION:  Advanced 

PREREQUISITE(S): None

INSTRUCTIONAL METHOD: Recorded video format (non-interactive)

ACCESSIBILITY ACCOMMODATIONS: Closed captioning of audio components. In order to request further accessibility accommodations, please email support@psychhub.com

COMPLETION REQUIREMENTS: To obtain your CE certificate, learners must complete a pre-test (not scored), progress through all course segments, complete a participant evaluation, and obtain a score of 80% or higher on a post-test. Learners are expected to complete the quiz within 3 attempts. If unable to do so, the learner will need to re-review the course segments.

FINANCIAL/COMMERCIAL SUPPORT STATEMENT: This course has no commercial support.

CONFLICT OF INTEREST:  This course has no potential conflict of interest or outside commercial support. Psych Hub's conflict of interest statement is found in the footer of the training center.

GRIEVANCE AND REFUND POLICIES: Grievance and refund policies are found in the footer of the training center.

PARTICIPATION COSTS:  The cost to participate in this CE activity is included in the subscription registration fee.

COURSE CREATION DATE:  1/27/2023

By the end of this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Identify key correlates of chronic pain, as well as sociodemographic differences
• Describe psychological theories of chronic pain
• Utilize psychological theories of pain to improve identification and assessment of patients with chronic pain in their practice
• Apply brief psychological interventions for chronic pain in their practice

1. Review key correlates of chronic pain
   1. Psychological factors that influence the pain experience
   2. Psychiatric diagnoses as both a risk and outcome
   3. Key sociodemographic differences in chronic pain experience and treatment outcomes
2. Identify and distinguish psychological theories of pain
1. Gate Control Theory
2. Learning theory as applied to chronic pain
3. Cognitive theory as applied to chronic pain
4. Emotional theories as applied to chronic pain 
3. Applying psychological theories to increase identification of patients’ chronic pain 
   1. Opening discussions with patients around the psychological influences of pain
   2. Assessment approaches to understanding pain experience, coping, and associated risks
4. Identifying brief psychological interventions 
   1. Psychoeducation
   2. Behavioral tools including behavioral activation and pacing
   3. Cognitive tools including challenging thoughts and pain acceptance
   4. Relaxation techniques
   5. Importance of interdisciplinary care