Pain Service - Bury Integrated Pain Service

What can you expect from the Bury Integrated Pain Service?

The Bury Integrated Pain Service is run by a team of experienced physiotherapists, advanced clinical practitioners, mental health nurses, psychological therapists and consultants. Though it is not always possible to get rid of pain completely, we aim to get your pain as well controlled as possible, to help you manage your pain independently and support you to continue your usual activities.

What will happen at my first appointment?

You will have an assessment with either a physiotherapist or an advanced clinical practitioner who specialises in helping people with long term pain. They will ask you how your symptoms started, how they have progressed, and how they affect you now. To help us understand your pain you may be asked to fill out some questionnaires to tell us about how it is affecting you. This also helps us to monitor any change in your condition.

The clinician will then discuss the different options available in the service that may help you manage your pain.

Treatment Options Offered

At your initial assessment we aim to agree a treatment plan with you. This plan may include:

• Information which explains why you get pain
• Advice about how to get back to your usual activities
• Taking part in an exercise programme which is at the right level for you
• Taking part in a pain management programme. This involves a combination of exercise, advice, education and planning how to  get back to your usual activities. Many people find the group environment very supportive and for many people this is the best option
• Talking therapies to help you manage your pain by helping to recognise where stress is worsening your pain
• Talking therapies to help improve your mood, decrease anxiety or to improve sleep
• Trying some different medications
• Helping you to decrease the amount of medication you take

To see which clinician offers each these treatments please see the later section on the team member roles.

Everybody is different and it is important to find the options that suit you best.

Sometimes other treatments are required, and your clinician will discuss this with you if needed. Your clinician may need to discuss your case with other members of the team to make sure that you are offered the best treatment.

What happens after my assessment?

Once you have agreed a plan with your clinician, any further appointments needed so you can start your treatment will be arranged.

During your time with the service, it is not unusual to be seen by more than one member of the team.

What happens after treatment?

Once you have completed your agreed treatment programme you will be discharged back to your GP. When you are discharged, we will agree a plan with you so that you know what you need to do to help to keep your pain under control and keep active. We will also advise your GP of anything that they can do to help support you.

Bury Integrated Pain Service Team Members

Specialist Pain Physiotherapist

The physiotherapy team offer education about persistent pain, advice around ways to introduce or reintroduce exercise, how to increase your daily activity, advice around activity pacing strategies, and advice relating to managing your sleep. The physiotherapy team also jointly run the Pain Management Programmes with members of the psychological medicine team.

There are also Advanced Physiotherapy Practitioners in the service who can order scans, blood tests, and perform local joint injections if needed.

Non-Medical Prescribers

Non-Medical Prescribers are clinicians (in this service they are physiotherapists and nurses) who have undergone additional training to allow them to advise on and prescribe pain medications. This can include trialling new medications, making changes to current pain medication, or helping you reduce the amount of medication you are taking.

Psychologists

A psychologist's role within the service is to look at any psychological concerns or issues you may be having and how these could be contributing to your pain. During your appointment, the psychologist will try to understand your mental health and use this information to offer a suitable approach to manage the issues. Psychology aims to help you to find ways of coping better with your condition and to lead a more fulfilling life despite the pain you are experiencing. They are trained in using several different therapeutic approaches which can help you to understand yourself better and help you to manage your pain. The psychology team also help run the Pain Management Programmes.

Advanced Clinical Practitioners

The advanced clinical practitioner is a specialist nurse who works with people who need both physical and psychological care. They will assess your psychological needs, provide guidance in relation to pain and to help mood, and signpost to other relevant services. You may spend some time with the advanced clinical practitioner to prepare you for therapy interventions with a clinical psychologist, or before being referred to another service.

Consultant Liaison Psychiatrist

A consultant liaison psychiatrist is a medical doctor who has qualified in medicine and then undertaken specialist training in the assessment and treatment of mental health conditions.

Liaison psychiatry is the branch of psychiatry that works with people who would benefit from both physical and psychological treatment. The liaison psychiatrist will approach your care holistically, drawing upon knowledge of medicines, physical health conditions, mental health conditions and psychological approaches to advise on your treatment.

Consultant in Anaesthetics and Pain Management

The pain consultant is a medical doctor who specialises in anaesthetics and performs pain-relieving procedures. Procedures are usually performed in the operating theatres at Fairfield General Hospital.

NHS Talking Therapies

The Bury Integrated Pain Service has close links with Bury NHS Talking Therapies team This service offers support and treatment if you are experiencing symptoms such as difficulty sleeping, low mood, stress, worry or anxiety, feelings of low self-worth or panic attacks.

They can also help you to cope with the effects of a long-term health problem or chronic pain, obsessive compulsive disorder, phobias, and post-traumatic stress reactions.

Who will be able to see my information?

To make sure that you receive the best treatment, your clinician will sometimes discuss your case with other members of the team. This is usually done at a formal meeting called the multi- disciplinary team (MDT) meeting. This meeting will have staff from the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust and Pennine Care NHS Foundation Trust present.

The MDT meeting will usually have physiotherapists, advanced clinical practitioners, psychological therapists, and doctors present.
 
Sometimes your pain clinician may feel that a referral to another service is appropriate. They will discuss this with you and refer you if you agree to this. Please let your pain clinician know if you do not want your information sharing with other members of the pain team.

Further information about the service can be found at www.northerncarealliance.nhs.uk/bury-integrated-pain-service

Patient Advice and Liaison Service and the Complaints Department

If you have any concerns about the treatment you have received, please contact the Patient Advice and Liaison Service (PALS):
Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust Email: pals@nca.nhs.uk
Tel: 0161 778 5665 Monday - Friday between 9:30 am - 4:30pm
Unit 7/8 Whitney Court, Southlink Business Park, Hamilton Street, Oldham, OL4 1DB.