It is the policy of Northridge Hospital to aggressively respond to patient complaints of pain utilizing a variety of modalities.
Pain is always subjective.
Objective observations of grimacing, limping and tachycardia may be useful in assessing the patient, but these signs are often absent in patients with chronic pain known to be caused by structural lesions. There is no neuropsychological or chemical test that can measure pain. The clinician must accept the patient's self-report of pain. The goal of pain management is to relieve the physical and psychosocial symptoms associated with pain while maintaining the patients' level of function. Pain is intimately linked to overall quality of life.