Impact of Bundled Care: Optimizing Pain Management Outcomes in Acute Care.

Purpose: Despite therapeutic advances, inadequate pain management in hospitalized patients often leads to chronic pain and opioid dependency. Nonpharmacologic strategies offer potential benefits, especially when integrated into a bundled care approach that enhances pain management and patient engagement. This research aimed to test the effect of a standardized bundle of evidence-based pain care strategies on medical-surgical patients' perceived pain quality outcomes.

Design & methods: This study employed a 2-group, quasi-experimental design to assess the impact of a unit-based intervention, PAIN-X Therapy, on pain care quality outcomes compared to usual pain care.

Results: There were 365 participants included in the study to determine the effects of pain care strategies. The Intervention group reported higher acetaminophen use (p = .0465), lower marijuana use (p = .0002), and greater use of alternative therapies (p = .0505). Those receiving comprehensive pain care reported better pain relief (OR=1.73, p < .05) and coping ability (OR=1.61, p < .05). Positive outcomes were observed for participants fully adhering to the therapy bundle.

Conclusion: Full PAIN-X Therapy improves patients' perceptions of pain care quality based on subsample analyses, emphasizing the need for further research to expand and refine these findings.

Clinical implications: Implementing comprehensive pain care bundles enhances patient outcomes and fosters collaboration across healthcare teams, optimizing the delivery of evidece-based pain relief strategies.