"It's Sink or Swim'': Exploring Patients' Challenges and Tool Needs for Self-Management of Postoperative Acute Pain

TL;DR

This study addresses the gap in understanding how patients self-manage acute postoperative pain and what digital tools they need. The authors conducted semi-structured interviews with 14 patients in Quebec, analyzing themes across transition to home, medication management, pain Subjectivity, emotional distress, daily life, caregivers, and social support. Key findings show that rapid pain fluctuations and highly individual experiences require adaptive, context-aware, and emotionally mindful digital support that avoids one-size-fits-all reminders. The work provides design implications to guide development of postoperative pain management tools that support timely information, personalized strategies, caregiver education, and social connectivity.

Abstract

Poorly managed postoperative acute pain can have long-lasting negative impacts and pose a major healthcare issue. There is limited investigation to understand and address the unique needs of patients experiencing acute pain. In this paper, we tackle this gap through an interview study with 14 patients who recently underwent postoperative acute pain to understand their challenges in pain self-management and their need for supportive tools. Our analysis identified various factors associated with the major aspects of acute pain self-management. Together, our findings indicated that tools for supporting these patients need to carefully consider information and support delivery to adapt to rapid changes in pain experiences, offer personalized and dynamic assistance that adapts to individual situations in context, and monitor emotion when promoting motivation. Overall, our work provided valuable knowledge to address the less-investigated but highly-needed problem of designing technology for the self-management of acute pain and similar health conditions.