Hello! I am a new member, I am a physician who has been working in the trauma-pain world for over 2 decades here in Arizona, and I am soon to start on an MPH with focus on epidemiology. I am going to survey primary care practices with regard to screening for trauma in children and adults throughout the state, and I would like to know if other members are interested in this project. I would welcome your input!
The idea is to get solid data on how many providers are screening for trauma, and for those that do screen: what tools are used, how confident the primary care provider is that they understand trauma treatment well enough to refer the patient appropriately, and what resources they have and what barriers they meet in connecting their patients to appropriate trauma care resources. This is a necessary first step, I believe, toward bringing Arizona online with some of the things that are happening in California and elsewhere with regard to funding for provider education, for primary care level trauma screening, and for adequate trauma treatment.
I am reaching out to like-minded colleagues throughout the country as well, for example the Center on Trauma and Adversity and Case Western Reserve University. There seems to be a lot going on… Finally.
To shed light on my thinking in relation to the trauma-pain connection, here is a webinar I recently did on the topic, for behavioral health and medical professionals :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-z42dPeqIMs&t=4s.
Warm Regards to All!!!
-Bennet Davis, M.D.