ArticleHealth expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy2022
Swallowing the pill of adverse effects: A qualitative study of patients' and pharmacists' experiences and decision-making regarding the adverse effects of chronic pain medications.
Article in Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.
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Who cites it
10 citing papers in PubMed, 13 citations in OpenAlex.
- Individual Perceptions and Self-Care Practices for Abdominal Pain: A Cross-Sectional Survey Conducted in Italian Community Pharmacies.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Traditional Chinese Medical Care Application Patterns Among Nurses With Menstrual Symptoms: A Q Methodology Investigation.Nursing open · 2026Article
- Fall-Related Adverse Events of Anti-Epileptic Drugs Used for Neuropathic Pain in Older Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Geriatrics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- "You get tired of saying, this doesn't work": A qualitative study of chronic pain treatments among older Latino adults.Pain management · 2025Article
- Perceived Risk of Medical Cannabis and Prescribed Cannabinoids for Chronic Pain: A Cross-Sectional Study Among Quebec Clinicians.Cannabis (Albuquerque, N.M.) · 2024Article
- Opioid-related policy changes: Experiences and perspectives from people who use opioids to manage non-cancer chronic pain.Drug and alcohol review · 2023Article
- Feasibility and Acceptability of an Overdose Prevention Intervention Delivered by Community Pharmacists for Patients Prescribed Opioids for Chronic Non-Cancer Pain.Pharmacy (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- 'What price do you put on your health?': Medical cannabis, financial toxicity and patient perspectives on medication access in advanced cancer.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2023Article
- Experiences and Perceptions of Medical Cannabis among People Living with Chronic Pain and Community Pharmacists: A Qualitative Study in Canada.Canadian journal of pain = Revue canadienne de la douleur · 2023Article
- Swallowing the pill of adverse effects: A qualitative study of patients' and pharmacists' experiences and decision-making regarding the adverse effects of chronic pain medications.Health expectations : an international journal of public participation in health care and health policy · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 5 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionPharmacological treatments of chronic pain can lead to numerous and sometimes serious adverse effects. Drawing on a social science approach to chronic illness, this study aimed to understand the experiences of people living with chronic pain and community pharmacists regarding the definition, prevention and management of analgesic adverse effects.
methodsThis qualitative study proceeded through 12 online focus groups (FGs) with people living with chronic pain (n = 26) and community pharmacists (n = 19), conducted between July 2020 and February 2021 in the province of Quebec, Canada. The semistructured discussion guides covered participants' definitions of adverse effects and decision-making regarding their prevention and management. Discussions were audio-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using grounded theory.
resultsBoth people with chronic pain and pharmacists provided varying definitions of analgesic adverse effects depending on patients' social and clinical characteristics. Present quality of life and serious long-term risks related to treatment were described as key dimensions influencing adverse effect appraisal. Dilemmas and discrepancies occurred between patients and pharmacists when choosing to prioritize pain relief or adverse effect prevention. Some patients lacked information about their medications and wanted to be more involved in decisions, while many pharmacists were concerned by patients' self-management of adverse effects. Preventing opioid-related overdoses often led pharmacists to policing practices. Despite most pharmacists wishing they could have a key role in the management of pain and adverse effects face organizational and financial barriers.
conclusionDefining, preventing and managing adverse effects in the treatment of chronic pain requires a person-centred approach and shared decision-making. Clinical training improvements and healthcare organization changes are needed to support pharmacists in providing patients with community-based follow-up and reliable information about the adverse effects of chronic pain treatments. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: A person with lived experience of chronic pain was involved as a coinvestigator in the study. He contributed to shaping the study design and objectives, including major methodological decisions such as the choice of pharmacists as the most appropriate professionals to investigate. In addition, 26 individuals with chronic pain shared their experiences extensively during the FGs.
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