title: The elements of pain care that the guidelines don't address.
abstract: I have managed many patients with chronic pain who were already on hefty doses of narcotics when they became my patients. Rather than refuse to care for them, we should seek to understand their story, continuously try other medications and therapies, repeatedly attempt to reduce dosages, and frequently check substance databases.
authors.affiliation: The Journal of Family Practice, Editor-in-Chief.
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hickner
mesh_terms: D059350:Chronic Pain / Q000523:psychology / Q000628:therapy; D005194:Family Practice / Q000379:methods*; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006801:Humans; D010346:Patient Care Management / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence / Q000379:methods; D010817:Physician-Patient Relations; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians' / Q000941:ethics / Q000592:standards