Developing a pain assessment tool for patients after major abdominal surgery

The purpose of this study was to develop a pain assessment tool for use among postoperative patients in Zambia (Postoperative Pain Assessment tool for Zambia, or POPAZ). Phase 1 of this project was an epidemiological quantitative analytical study conducted at the University Teaching Hospitals, Lusaka in Zambia. The sample comprised of 30 nurses and surgeons who were actively involved in providing direct patient care to post-surgical patients. An adapted Clinical Decision Making Survey tool was used to collect the data. The study revealed five relevant measures of postoperative pain: patient mobility/activity, level of tolerance to activity, facial expressions, vital signs and overall patient behaviour. The findings of this phase have thus provided a framework for the development of a postoperative pain assessment tool that can be used with postsurgical patients following major abdominal surgery.