Qualitative research on pain experiences of adult burn patients

Objective To explore the pain experiences of adult burn patients so as to lay foundation for practical analgesic measures. Methods Using phenomenological method in qualitative research, semi-structured interviews were conducted on 12 adult burn patients hospitalized in our burn units from May to November 2015, aiming at pain experiences from immediately after burns to 3 to 7 months after being discharged from hospital. Then the Colaizzi′s analysis method was applied to analyze, induce, and refine themes of interview data. Results After analysis, pain experiences of adult burn patients were generalized into 6 themes: deep pain experiences, heavy psychological burden, limited daily life, poor assessment and treatment of pain, different attributions of pain, and different ways of coping of pain. Conclusions Burn pain brings harm to the patients′ physiology, mentality, and daily life. Nevertheless, pain processing modes of medical staff and patients themselves are the key factors affecting patients′ pain experiences. Therefore, according to the deficiency of current situation of pain management, the targeted analgesic intervention measures should be carried out from the perspectives of medical staff and patients.