User:Ruthieod/Undertreatment of pain

Society and Culture Lead (Josie):

Under treatment of pain may also be cause by racial and gender bias.

Josie (Gender):

There are disparities in the quality of healthcare between sexes and genders, and because pain is one of the most common reasons for people to seek healthcare, there are disparities in the treatment of pain. Research show that there are biological differences in the experience of pain both along biological sex lines and along gender identity lines. There is also evidence to support that social expectations about the expression of pain can dictate patient and doctor responses, linking the treatment of pain to social stereotypes. However, historically, women have been underrepresented in clinical studies, meaning that their experience of pain and their reaction to various medications is less understood. Additionally, chronic pain, and conditions of chronic pain, are more common in women, but the rates of chronic pain and the differences in experience between men and women are not well documented. Chronic pain in women may also be attributed to reproductive issues or mental health, even when these are not causes.

Ruthie (Race):

Literature examining the medical field indicates disparities in pain care for racial and ethnic minorities. Compared to Caucasian patients, African American and Hispanic patients are particularly at risk for undertreatment of pain. There are a variety of conditions for which African Americans and other racial and ethnic minorities experience continuous undertreatment including cancer pain, acute postoperative pain, chest pain, acute pain, and chronic low back pain. Research demonstrates that even when controlling for age, gender, and pain intensity, racial and ethnic minorities are frequently subjected to insufficient treatment for acute and chronic pain when compared to non-Hispanic whites. A study examining over 1300 nonminority and minority patients discovered that patients at facilities that had principally minority patients, were three times more likely to be undermedicated than patients treated in nonminority facilities. Furthermore, a follow-up study that investigated pain treatment in minority patients with recurrent or metastatic cancer found that 74% of Latinx and 59% of African American patients experiencing pain were not given the adequate analgesics. Minority patients, when compared to nonminority patients, were not as likely to be appropriately evaluated for their pain and reported less pain relief. Although the prescription of opioid analgesics in response to pain-related visits grew from 1993 to 2005, disparities in prescribing to racial and ethnic minorities persisted. White patients experiencing pain were considerably more likely to be prescribed an opioid analgesic when compared to Black, Hispanic or Asian patients. Specifically, 40% of white patients were prescribed opioid analgesics in 2005, while only 32% of nonwhite patients experiencing pain were prescribed them.