Fighting the battle against Chronic Pain requires an Army
Deloitte recently released a report, commissioned by Painaustralia, on the true cost of chronic pain in Australia and the findings are staggering. The human, personal and economic cost is one of the largest health issues affecting the health of Australians and one that isn't talked about enough. Consider these statistics form the report:
3.24 million Australians are living with chronic pain;
Those living with pain are more likely to be female and of working age;
Their pain is restricting the activities they can undertake and the work they can do;
Chronic pain costs Australia $73.2 billion dollars each year including $48.3 billion in lost productivity; and
Chronic pain has a detrimental impact on quality of life – costing our society an estimated $66.1 billion dollars each and every year.
I find it unacceptable that so many Australian's are living with such a debilitating condition that impacts their quality of life, that of their family and society as a whole. What is more frightening is the Deloitte forecast of the future.
If our policy framework to treat pain doesn’t change, then the annual cost of pain in Australia will rise from $139.3 billion to an estimated $215.6 billion by 2050.
Whilst the economic cost is not insubstantial, the human cost to individuals facing a life of chronic pain is the biggest challenge to our society. Considering that pain is the leading health challenge facing women 45-64, this issue deserves more attention and focus on better treatments. (Source: Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2018) These are our mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, wives, husbands, friends and colleagues. I'm sure we all know someone suffering from chronic pain.
However, you may be surprised that many more suffer in silence, take regular and strong pain medication and get on with it. It's the Australian stoic way. But it doesn't have to be like this.
For the past six years I have been working with the Metro Pain Group with Dr Paul Verrills, to address this growing pain epidemic. So focussed on addressing this condition is our group that three years ago we built a hospital specifically to provide the best possible treatment for our patients.
The Monash House Private Hospital, located in Melbourne, treats more volume of pain patients than any other facility in Australia. This specialist pain facility is a world leader in the treatment of pain. Patients fly in from all over the world for treatment and from every state in Australia.
The pain procedures we perform can immediately reduce a patient's pain, often by as much as 50%, which is tremendously satisfying seeing the relief on their faces when they wake up and have such a difference in their pain. It's fulfilling work.
To get these amazing results we have assembled an amazing team to work with our doctors; radiographers, scrub scout nurses, technicians, anaesthetic doctors and their assistants plus all of the administration, general nursing and support staff. It really takes an army of quality people working together to achieve such a high standard patient outcome.
This is where we need more help!
We are constantly on the look out for qualified and hardworking staff who are as passionate as we are about solving this chronic pain condition that affects so many. To address the growing issue we need to grow too. So if you are passionate about helping us in this cause, visit our career website or refer us to a friend who would be interested to join the team.
Chronic pain is a large burden to Australian society but together we can make a real difference to peoples lives and our society. I hope you will join us in the fight to reduce pain.
Dr Dan Bates
