Pain in dependent elderly people: Home visit program culturally adapted to a rural population

Abstract

Objective To assess the effects of a culturally adapted home visit program on pain intensity in elderly people with disability and poverty conditions in the rural population of Cáqueza-Cundinamarca, Colombia. Method Quasi-experimental study with pre-test and post-test. The study included 34 people over 60 years of age with physical or visual impairment and total or partial dependence. The home visit program consisted of seven visits paid for an average of two hours and an interval of 13 to 15 days. A syncretism of drugs, medicinal plants and home remedies was proposed for pain management. Pain was assessed using the verbal pain scale and qualitative data were recorded in the field diary. Wilcoxon signed-rank test was applied. Results During the pre-test, 100% of the participants presented with a type of pain, while favorable and significant effects were observed in the post-test (p value s<0.001) in relation to pain reduction. Changes are qualitatively attributed, partly, to the development of the program and other explanations include values and beliefs of the group. Conclusions The culturally adapted home visits program shows that it is possible to act in contexts where dialogues occur between popular and professional knowledge, achieving a safe practice adapted to the cultural universe of people. Latin America requires professionals culturally sensitive to expressions and perceptions of pain, who are curious to explore, based on evidence, the therapeutic possibilities proposed by popular knowledge.