The healthcare establishment which won this year’s first prize in the European Private Hospitalization Awards in this category is:
CUF Descobertas Hospital in Lisbon, Portugal
For its ACUTE PAIN UNIT
CUF Descobertas Hospital in Lissabon created an Acute Pain Unit to improve patient’s outcomes by the implementation of an appropriate and integral approach to pain. The acute pain unit was established to provide the patient with a better recovery and experience, promoting effective and safe treatment of acute pain through a variety of preventive and monitoring actions. Such actions facilitate the assessment of the effectiveness of the patient’s recovery and response to the administrated therapy. The establishment of this unit not only enables the generation of significant impact on patient care, whilst also fostering exemplary internal practices. This is achieved by conducting audits to assess the effectiveness of the strategies in place; implementing training and updating programs for health professionals; providing more information to patients and caregivers and promoting research, with a special focus on the impact of certain therapies in cases of post-operative recovery. This initiative aims to improve the response of patients to pain situations.
CUF Descobertas Hospital was the first unit in the group to implement this pilot, designing all procedures for the new acute pain unit and monitoring the results obtained in patient care.
The Acute Pain Unit was created to improve patient’s outcomes by the implementation of an appropriate and integral approach to pain. The Unit’s goals are to:
- Promote effective and safe treatment of acute surgical and non-surgical pain;
- Reduce comorbidities and sequelae (chronic pain);
- Implement training and update programs for health professionals;
- Provide appropriate information on the approach to pain to patients and caregivers;
- Increase patient satisfaction.
In this context, the aim was for the establishment of this new unit to promote more targeted care for patients with acute pain that proves challenging to control, allowing for greater therapeutic success; a reduction in comorbidities and sequelae; lessening the trauma associated with the patient’s experience and diminishing the hospitalization time, with an effective impact on hospital costs resulting from their stay in hospital. This project essentially focused on the implementation of a pilot program aimed at patients suffering from post-operative pain, increasing their comfort, and reducing the likelihood of complications whilst increasing their knowledge of therapies. This unit plays a crucial role in the care of patients who are experiencing episodes of acute pain, ensuring they receive the appropriate treatment for a faster and more comfortable recovery, thus creating greater patient wellbeing and the provision of excellent healthcare.
