The role of acute pain service in postoperative pain relief

Abstract

Perioperative analgesia is a major challenge for healthcare providers. Not well-controlled pain after surgery can lead to complications. The worldwide spread of acute pain service (APS) teams has proven to increase the effectiveness of postoperative pain management. This publication aims to describe the concept, structure, quality criteria, and implementation models of acute pain management services based on relevant publications. A systematic literature review was conducted in the relevant databases by the PICO technique, and 263 abstracts were evaluated. The service is available in many countries around the world, basically in three functional structures. The team consists of anesthesiologists and nursing staff specialized in pain therapy. There are 5 quality criteria for describing how the teams work, but service plays an important role in educating patients and staff and developing pain-therapy protocols. We recommend a survey-based evaluation of the current status of APS and the fulfilment of quality criteria in the field of postoperative pain management in Hungary.