Mass media campaigns for chronic pain: a scoping review to inform design of future campaigns

Abstract

Background

Chronic pain is the leading cause of disability worldwide due to both a high prevalence and the associated health burden. Mass media campaigns can educate the public, promote evidence-based healthcare messages, and positively influence health behaviours.

Objectives

To evaluate the literature on mass media campaigns focusing on adults with chronic pain management to inform the design of future campaigns.

Methods

A scoping review including literature from seven databases was undertaken. A narrative synthesis approach was used to identify the key features of all campaigns and gaps in knowledge.

Results

Twenty-five articles evaluating 11 mass media campaigns for pain management, targeting the public and/or healthcare providers were included. Most of the campaigns were on back pain from high-income, Western countries and were shown to produce small to moderate improvements in public beliefs and minimal positive change on public or provider behaviour. The key elements from campaigns include careful consideration for developing and testing key messages with a target audience. Both high and low-cost campaigns had produced similar improvements in campaign awareness. The use of social media as a mode of dissemination was relatively unexplored.

Conclusion

Mass media campaigns on pain management may lead to positive changes in public and healthcare providers' beliefs and minimal effect on changing behaviours. Social media may have considerable potential as a low cost, high reach modality. Future pain campaigns conducted in other contexts (e.g. low and middle-income countries) and targeted populations (e.g. culturally and linguistically diverse communities) are needed.

Keywords:

• Chronic pain
• health campaign
• public health
• social media
• self-management

Acknowledgements

Special thanks should be given to Michael Fauchelle for providing assistance with the Endnote and library database support in the foundation of the research. We would also like thank the anonymous reviewers from a previous journal submission for their constructive feedback to this manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s)

Additional information

Funding

Supported by School of Physiotherapy Research Fund, University of Otago, New Zealand.

Notes on contributors

Kelda Aikman

Kelda Aikman is a physiotherapist. She was a final year physiotherapy student at the time of completing this research project.

Lyndie Burtt

Lyndie Burtt is a physiotherapist. She was a final year physiotherapy student at the time of completing this research project.

Olivia de Ronde

Olivia de Ronde is a physiotherapist. She was a final year physiotherapy student at the time of completing this research project.

Dave K. W. Lim

Dave K. W. Lim is a physiotherapist. He was a final year physiotherapy student at the time of completing this research project.

Paige Stratton

Paige Stratton is a physiotherapist. She was a final year physiotherapy student at the time of completing this research project.

Man Hon Wong

Man Hon Wong is a physiotherapist. He was a final year physiotherapy student at the time of completing this research project.

Rebecca Grainger

Rebecca Grainger is a rheumatologist in public hospital practice and an associate professor of medicine at University of Otago Wellington. Her research interests include use of technology to support health care and health practitioner education and particularly participatory health informatics.

Hemakumar Devan

Hemakumar Devan is a physiotherapist and a postdoctoral fellow at the Centre for Health, Activity and Rehabilitation Research (CHARR), University of Otago in Wellington. His research interest is to foster self-management support to empower people with persistent pain and their whānau (family and significant others)..