About

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What are SolvingPain and the Perioperative Pain Management Pathway?

SolvingPain was born out of the desire to help healthcare professionals in the fight against one of the biggest challenges currently facing Canada: The opioid epidemic.

Physicians and other prescribers find themselves in a unique position when it comes to this crisis. We know that inappropriate pain management is contributing to inappropriate opioid prescribing and even opioid misuse. Prescription drugs are sometimes diverted into the illicit pill market or become a “getaway” product into illegal opioid use. Additionally, as many as 10 per cent of surgical patients may find themselves persistently using opioids past the standard treatment course. At the same time, opioids can be critical for minimizing pain during the perioperative period and reluctance to use them can result in unsatisfactory patient experiences, which can then impact outcomes and increase healthcare costs.

Thankfully, there is a growing body of best practices that dives into how opioids, co-analgesics and non-pharmacologic techniques can be used to create optimal pain management plans for surgical patients. Unfortunately, these guidelines can often be cumbersome to access.

Enter SolvingPain’s first initiative: The Perioperative Pain Management Pathway. As a guide to best practices, its goal is to enable physicians to provide the best possible pain control for their patients using evidence-based practices that also limit the potential for opioid misuse and abuse.  The Pathway launched with recommendations for over 50 common surgeries, including hip replacement, cholecystectomy and Caesarean section.

Developed for busy healthcare practitioners, the Pathway is where prescribers can review pain management plans for opioid-naive patients and well as those coping with comorbidities and other factors that may impact their pain management plans. It was created using the latest research, including the Consensus Statement for the Prescription of Pain Medication at Discharge after Elective Adult Surgery and material authored by Michigan OPEN; and will be updated with new data and new procedures on a regular basis.  

Optimal patient recovery means treating patients as partners. That includes setting the right expectations for their recovery and providing practical tools around opioid use. To facilitate this, SolvingPain.ca also features a curated selection of patient education materials tailored to a Canadian audience.

Who is behind SolvingPain and the Perioperative Pain Management Pathway?

The website was created and is maintained by Ontario’s Anesthesiologists, the organization that represents Ontario’s 1,300-plus active anesthesiologists. As experts in pain management and leaders in the perioperative space, we have the knowledge and real-world experience needed to power this unique project. 

 The guidance found on this site was first identified by the volunteer members of SolvingPain’s Action Group. The Action Group is comprised of specialists anesthesiologists whose cumulative clinical time adds up to decades of valuable experience. For more details on our Action Group volunteers, click here. Additionally, all materials on SolvingPain.ca have been reviewed by a volunteer group of healthcare professionals that includes surgeons, nurses and a pharmacist.

If you have a comment, question or correction about any of the site’s information, please contact us.

What’s next for SolvingPain and the Perioperative Pain Management Pathway?

The Perioperative Pain Management Pathway is the first part of a multi-phase project. SolvingPain’s long-term goal is an app that will provide users with additional information about individual patient risk factors in real-time together with feedback about their own prescribing patterns. The intent is also to broaden the scope of the app to include transition pain management  and additional information related to such common issues as lower back pain and headaches, which account for some 70% of family practitioner visits. 

We are looking for partners and funders who can help take SolvingPain to the next level. For more information on what we have planned, and to discuss if SolvingPain might be the right fit for a partnership with your organization, please contact us.

How can I help?

By telling your healthcare colleagues about SolvingPain about our URL: SolvingPain.ca. If you are a member of Ontario’s Anesthesiologists and would like to get involved more directly, please reach out for more information.

Additionally, please don’t hesitate to email us if your organization would like to explore the possibility of a partnership or sponsorship.

Who makes up the SolvingPain Action Group?

SolvingPain and the Perioperative Pain Management Pathway would not have been possible without the expertise and hard work of our volunteer action group, listed below. Their hours of ongoing dedication are greatly appreciated!

  • Dr Elaheh Adly, Hamilton Health Sciences

  • Dr. Liban Ahmed, Trillium Health Partners

  • Dr. Anil Kumar Arekapudi, Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital

  • Dr. Elisheva Chernick, Strathroy-Middlesex General Hospital, locums for Meno Ya Win Health Centre (Sioux Lookout) & La Verendrye Hospital (Ft. Frances)

  • Dr. Collin Clarke, St. Joseph’s Health Care London

  • Dr. Julian deBacker, Resident at the University of Toronto

  • Dr. Tania Di Renna, Toronto Academic Pain Management Institute

  • Dr. Fady Ebrahim, Hamilton Health Sciences & St. Michael’s Hospital

  • Dr. Sylvain Gagné, The Ottawa Hospital-General

  • Dr. Chris Harle, London Health Sciences Centre University Campus

  • Dr. Melanie Jaeger, Kingston General Hospital

  • Dr Deepa Kattail, Hamilton Health Sciences; Twitter

  • Dr. Kyle Kirkham, Toronto Western Hospital

  • Dr. David Neilipovitz, The Ottawa Hospital, Twitter

  • Dr. Brian Nishimura, Trillium Health Partners

  • Dr. Razvan Purza, Michael Garron Hospital

  • Dr. Sanjho Srikandarajah, North York General Hospital

  • Dr. Senthil Thiyagarajan, Niagara Health; Twitter

  • Dr. Sarah Tierney, The Ottawa Hospital—Civic Site; Twitter

  • Dr. Vatsal Trivedi, Trillium Health Partners; Twitter

  • Dr. Kathryn Wheeler, formerly with The Ottawa Hospital; Twitter

Who else helped to create SolvingPain.ca?

The team behind SolvingPain and the Perioperative Pain Management Pathway would like to thank the following individuals and organizations for their assistance in reviewing and/or contributing to SolvingPain.ca:

Banner Image Sources
*The Ontario Drug Policy Research Network. Changing Circumstances Surrounding Opioid-Related Deaths in Ontario during the COVID-19 Pandemic (Internet). (cited 2021 May 25). Available here.
**Bawor M, Dennis BB, Varenbut M, Daiter J, Marsh DC, Plater C, et al. Sex Differences in Substance Use, Health, and Social Functioning Among Opioid Users Receiving Methadone Treatment: A Multicenter Cohort Study. Biol Sex Differ. 2015;6:21.
***Youth and Prescription Painkillers. CAMH (Internet). (cited 2021 Apr 5). Available here.