On 17th May Matt was invited to participate as an expert witness in the Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria (HI NENC) Citizens’ Jury on Persistent Pain Management. Matt was invited to share insights from his research into the use of emergency care by patients experiencing back pain.
The North East and North Cumbria (NENC) region faces pressing challenges in managing persistent pain, a condition with profound physical, mental, and social impacts. As a national outlier in its reliance on strong analgesics, notably opioids, the region sees elevated prescription rates in deprived communities, deepening health inequalities.
To tackle this, Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria (HI NENC) has delivered a Citizens’ Jury with support from a specialist involvement organisation. The aim is to answer the question: "How do we achieve a shift away from solely medical intervention to better support people who live with persistent pain?"
A citizen’s jury is a structured deliberative process engaging 14 diverse citizens who were randomly selected. They spent 35 hours hearing from experts, deliberating on evidence, and proposing recommendations to enhance pain management and reduce opioid dependency. Designed to inform evidence-based policy, this project also aims to boost public understanding of healthcare decisions and establish a blueprint for NHS co-production.
Matt was invited to share a video about the back pain pathway, when opioids are used, and the role of accident and emergency in the broader pathway. He then took part in a 45-minute session taking questions from the panel. They were particularly interested in the approach’s emergency care takes when patients present with chronic pain. There was also discussion of the place of emergency care in supporting patients with chronic pain. Matt was able to answer their questions on current practice as well as discuss forward looking plans for research into the care provided both for acute flare-ups of chronic pain, but also the management of patients who experience chronic pain who might be presenting with other acute conditions.
Matt’s evidence and input was welcomed by the jury. Their work continued to the 7th June and it is expected that they will contribute to recommendations on future research priorities around chronic pain.
For more information on the work of Health Innovation North East and North Cumbria go to: https://healthinnovationnenc.org.uk/citizens-jury-pain-management-north-east-cumbria/
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