The new definition of pain formulated by the International Association for the Study of Pain will not revolutionize the daily practice of physiotherapy, but it will contribute to the evolution of the understanding of the phenomenon among health professionals.
Kadija Perreault is a member of the RQRD, a professor in the Department of Rehabilitation at Université Laval and a researcher at the Centre interdisciplinaire de recherche en réadaptation et en intégration sociale. In collaboration with 10 other professors, she published an article in the journal Physiotherapy Canada on the new definition of pain proposed by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP). Kadija Perreault and her colleagues emphasize that pain is not only a physical problem, but a subjective experience that depends, among other things, on the personal and social context in which it is expressed. In their paper, the authors describe the current state of physiotherapy practice in team-based primary care organizations in Ontario, perceived barriers and facilitators to the provision of physiotherapy services, and recommendations for improving the way these services are provided.
