With more education, MCOs will be interested in cooperative development of measures that better define the group of pain patients and of programs that improve quality of care. A related educational opportunity concerns training of primary care providers. These providers play a central role in today's healthcare environment. They will welcome presentations that help them define pathways for treating pain patients. APS members affiliated with medical schools will also want to share the position statement with appropriate faculty members.
Action energized by values has more power.
If your concern is with development of a multidisciplinary chronic pain treatment program, plan a meeting of key players in your area and discuss the position statement and how it can be used to fuel a chronic pain initiative in your community. If your concern is with development of empirically based guidelines for treatment of pain, initiate a discussion with an MCO concerning a pilot research project on this topic. Send the guideline to the MCO representative before your first meeting. If your proclivity is for teaching, offer to make a lunch hour presentation on the APS position statement to a local primary care clinic. Dozens of pain patients cross your threshold on a daily basis.