Pain in low-income older women with disabilities: a qualitative descriptive study

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this qualitative study was to identify how low-income older women with disabilities perceive pain, pain management, and communication with healthcare providers. We interviewed 26 low-income women (average age 75 years; SD 7.0), eliciting the following overarching themes: “Invisibility of Pain: Unnoticed or Undetected,” “Escalating Pain Leads to Help Seeking,” “Communication with Healthcare Providers and Outcomes,” “Pain Management Facilitates Function and Accomplishment,” and “The Intersection of Pain, Disability, and Depressive Symptoms.” Study findings support the ways in which behavior changes from pain can impede pain management.

KEYWORDS:

• Aging
• pain
• communication
• qualitative descriptive

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the study participants and the CAPABLE study (NIH/NIA R01- AG040100, Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services, 1C1CMS330970, PI: Last author SLS). This work was supported by The Johns Hopkins Interdisciplinary Training Program in Biobehavioral Pain Research (NINDS, T32NS07020) and the Johns Hopkins Building Interdisciplinary Research in Women’s Health (BIRCWH) K12 program (NIH 3K12HD085845-03S1). The first author, JLT, is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Harold Amos Medical Faculty Program. The second author, BFD, is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Future of Nursing Scholar Program. This work and the last author, SLS, are supported by the Rita and Alex Hillman Foundation (19043041).

Disclosure statement

The last author, SLS,  reported being inventors of the CAPABLE training program, for which the Johns Hopkins University is entitled to fees. This arrangement has been reviewed and approved by the Johns Hopkins University in accordance with its conflict of interest policies.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Johns Hopkins University Interdisciplinary Training Program in Biobehavioral Pain Research [National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, T32NS070201],  Johns Hopkins Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women BIRCWH K12 Program [National Institute of Health -Office of Research in Women's Health, 3K12HD085845-03S1], and the Rita and Alex Hilman Foundation [19043041].