Implementation of Pain Assessment Tool for Patients with Dementia

According to the World Health Organization (2019) approximately 50 million people worldwide have dementia. Pain in patients with dementia who are unable to verbalize discomfort may lead to unnecessary suffering and a poor quality of life. Accurate pain evaluation by the nurse is of critical importance, yet pain is often inappropriately assessed and undertreated. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to implement a pain assessment tool for the assessment and management of pain in patients with dementia. The project took place at an assisted living facility in Boca Raton, Florida. The Swanson middle-range Theory of Caring (SCT) served as the theoretical framework and the Plan, Do, Study, Act model supported the translation of evidence into practice.