The children's pain management service (CPMS) incorporates both the acute pain service (APS) and the chronic pain management clinic.

Acute pain service

• Acute pain is defined as pain of recent (usually acute) onset and of short duration
  It may be in response to surgery, injury or disease
• The acute pain service manages all aspects of acute pain ranging from post-operative pain management to disease related pain, procedural pain and cancer pain
• The acute pain service also assists with pain management of patients with palliative pain issues

Referrals

• Patients who are prescribed analgesia infusions in theatre are automatically referred to CPMS
• For other children requiring pain management a referral needs to be made to CPMS by paging 5773 (24 hours) and completing an inpatient consultation report. The referrer needs to ensure that the child's primary consultant has approved of CPMS involvement

Ward rounds

• the acute pain service reviews patients twice daily on week days and once daily on weekends and public holidays
• If analgesia is inadequate or the patient is experiencing side-effects, APS must be called to review the child
• APS can be contacted at all times on pager 5773

Chronic pain management team

We are a multidisciplinary team made up of pain medicine specialists, psychologists, physiotherapists, occupational therapists and a child and adolescent psychiatrist. We assess and treat children and adolescents who are experiencing persistent or chronic pain. Information on referrals and appointments is available via the Chronic Pain Management Clinic page.

Procedural pain management (comfort kids)

More information on procedural pain management can be found on the comfort kids webpage

Information for children and carers

Children's Pain management Clinic - Information for families

Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) fact sheet

Managing your headaches fact sheet

Information for healthcare practitioners

RCH pain service clinical practice guidelines