Sickle Cell Pain Management

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Sickle Cell Disease Pain Management Alexandria Boddie Jacksonville University Introduction Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a chronic hematologic disorder that is characterized by sickle shaped red blood cells. Sickle cell involves the red blood cells and their ability to carry oxygen throughout the body. Normal red blood cells are round in shape and are able to flow easily through the blood vessels, while sickle cell red blood cells are sticky and sickle shaped when they lose their oxygen, making it difficult for them to move through the narrow blood vessels. As a result, they obstruct blood vessels, causing ischemic organ damage and episodes of unpredictable and recurrent vaso-occlusive crisis (VOC) that is sometimes severe. In the…show more content…
The APS recognized that VOC episodes have been poorly managed as often times these patients arrive at emergency rooms for treatment they receive little consideration for the complexity of their pain. They are classified as drug seekers and manipulators by the medical staff with whom they must entrust their care. This grave injustice within the healthcare system is detrimental to those with SCD, leading to more pain, stress and disabilities in relation to their condition. Search Strategy A literature review was carried out to examine the barriers to adequate pain management of VOC’s in patients with SCD. The databases searched were CINAHL, OVID and EBSCO, using the terms ‘sickle cell’, ‘pain’, ‘barriers’, ‘ethnicity’ and ‘disparities’. Literature was limited to the past ten years and all articles obtained were from scholarly journals. The literature review recognized several barriers to adequate pain management for people diagnosed with SCD, which are preventing them from receiving appropriate care and treatment of their pain. Addressing these barriers would permit those with SCD to have their pain properly managed, thus improving their quality of…show more content…
In this blind study, all data elements were taken from the emergency room medical record without knowledge to the clinician. Tanabe, et al, (2007) collected specifics related to the patient’s pain score, analgesic agent, dose, route and time of administration of the initial analgesic using a trained data abstractor. Additional data collected included the patients’ demographics, triage level upon arrival to the ER, presence or absence of intravenous (IV) access and study site. Analgesic administration was compared to the suggested guidelines of the APS. Analgesic medications, dosages and routes of administration were classified as correct or incorrect. One hundred and fifty-nine patients with SCD were included in the

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