ArticleCanadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien2024
Chronic pain management in primary care: Using population-based data to examine family physician practice patterns.
Article in Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 6 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
6 citing papers in PubMed.
- Chronic Pain and Distress in the Primary Care Setting: Implementing a Digital Pain and Distress Screener to Optimize Integrated Psychological Treatment.Journal of clinical psychology in medical settings · 2026Article
- Access to primary care for people with chronic pain: a lived/living experience-informed mixed-methods study protocol.BMJ open · 2026Article
- Let's talk about pain: A mixed methods exploration of patients' pain knowledge and preferred ways to introduce the biopsychosocial model of pain.Canadian journal of pain = Revue canadienne de la douleur · 2026Article
- The impact of opioid prescribing guidelines on opioid dispensation: A systematic review and meta-analysis.Canadian journal of pain = Revue canadienne de la douleur · 2026Review
- Novel psychotherapy approaches for patients with chronic noncancer pain: Effective modalities relevant to family practice.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadien · 2025Review
- Correction.Canadian family physician Medecin de famille canadienArticle
Corrections and comments
- Erratum issued
Authors and funding
6 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo examine trends in chronic pain (CP) practice patterns among community-based family physicians (FPs).
designPopulation-based descriptive study using health administrative data.
settingBritish Columbia from fiscal years 2008-2009 to 2017-2018.
participantsPatients with an algorithm-defined CP condition and community-based FPs, both registered with the British Columbia Medical Services Plan.
main outcome measuresUsing British Columbia health administrative data and a CP algorithm adapted from a previous study, the following were compared between fiscal years 2008-2009 and 2017-2018: CP patient volumes, pain-related medication prescriptions, referrals to pain specialists, musculoskeletal imaging requests, and interventional procedures.
resultsIn the fiscal year 2017-2018, among community-based family physicians (N=4796), an average of 32.5% of their patients had CP. Between 2008-2009 and 2017-2018, the proportion of CP patients per FP who were prescribed long-term opioids increased by an average absolute change of 0.56%; the proportion prescribed long-term neuropathic pain medications increased by 1.1%; and the proportion prescribed long-term nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs decreased by 0.49%. The proportion of musculoskeletal imaging out of all imaging requests made by FPs increased by 2.0%; pain-related referrals increased by 1.73%; there was a 4.6% increase in the proportion of community-based FPs who performed 1 or more pain injections; and 10% more FPs performed 1 or more trigger point injections within a fiscal year.
conclusionFindings show that the work of providing care to patients with CP increased while CP patient volumes per FP decreased. Workforce planning for community-based FPs should consider these increased demands and ensure FPs are adequately supported to provide CP care.
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