The Syndemic of Chronic Pain: A Narrative Review of an Integrated Care Model from Community-Based Management to Interventional Anesthesia and Public Health Surveillance
Abstract
Background: Chronic pain, mental health disorders, and opioid misuse constitute a synergistic epidemic (syndemic) that overwhelms traditional, fragmented healthcare approaches. This complex interplay demands a fundamentally integrated care model spanning community-based management, specialized intervention, and population-level surveillance.
Aim: This narrative review aims to construct and advocate for a cohesive, multidisciplinary framework for addressing the chronic pain syndemic.
Methods: A comprehensive literature search was conducted across PubMed, Scopus, PsycINFO, and CINAHL databases for peer-reviewed articles published between 2010 and 2024. Search terms included combinations of "chronic pain," "syndemic," "opioid misuse," "integrated care," "multidisciplinary pain management," "public health surveillance," and relevant professional roles.
Results: The review identifies critical, interdependent functions for each discipline: Family Medicine and Nursing provide first-line biopsychosocial assessment and non-pharmacologic foundational care. Anesthesiology-led Pain Medicine offers advanced interventional procedures and complex pharmacotherapy. Pharmacy ensures medication safety through risk mitigation and therapy management. Public Health and Epidemiology provide essential surveillance data on opioid overdoses and population pain prevalence, while Health Safety addresses systemic prescribing safeguards and diversion prevention.
Conclusion: Effectively addressing the chronic pain syndemic is contingent upon dismantling care silos and implementing a proactive, patient-centered, and population-aware integrated model. Future efforts must focus on formalizing collaborative pathways, co-locating services, leveraging shared health informatics, and aligning policies to support this essential teamwork.
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Authors
Copyright (c) 2024 Hassan Ibrahim Abdo Fath, Mhammmed Quayyid Almutairi, Yahia Abdullah Monawar Mubarak, Wadyan Saud Awn Aljameeli, Meshal Abdullah Alhilfi, Ali Mohammed Al Amer, Omar Murdhi Alanazi, Ibtihal A. Alyami, Ali Waleed Khalafallah, Sami Mutlaq Aldughaylibi, Saad Sanaitan Almutairi, Ibrahim Ahmed Ibrahim Arawi, Taib Husain Marir
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