Establishment of multidisciplinary pain management clinics and training programs in the developing world: experiences from Southeast Asia

Abstract

The establishment of an MDPC as an integrated interdisciplinary service may not be necessary for every hospital setting, but it has been shown to be a cost-effective approach for the management of patients with chronic pain. Although there has not been any specific study to show cost-effectiveness of MDPCs in this region, the economic benefits of self management programs, the Malaysian experience showed positive trends in terms of return to work and reduction in dependence on the medical system.3 The development of MDPCs in the ASEAN region has shown this service to be an important step in improving pain management in developing countries because MDPCs provide not only topquality pain management services, but also pain education and training for clinicians, including primary care physicians, secondary and tertiary care physicians, and pain medicine specialists.