Acknowledging pain in others

The recent International Association for the Study of Pain's (IASP) definition of pain apparently minimizes pain suffered by nonverbal individuals. This tendency is also reflected in recent studies about the care of patients and in social policies such as the so-called Baby Doe federal regulations for treatment of infants. It is important to counter this tendency to minimize pain by such means as giving clinicians a better education about (1) pain management; (2) decision-making standards such as the best interest, and moral issues about how to rank important medical goals; (3) research and practice guidelines relating to pain; and (4) encouraging health care, legal, and other institutions to adopt goals and means to address pain adequately.