"This report was researched and written by Laura Thomas, researcher in the Health and Human Rights Division of Human Rights Watch"--P. 85. "May 2011"--Table of contents page. Includes bibliographical references.
Contents:
Key Terms in Palliative Care and Pain Treatment -- Summary -- I. Background: Palliative Care and Pain Treatment -- The Need for Palliative Care and Pain Treatment -- The Consequences of Untreated Pain and Lack of Palliative Care -- Impact of Palliative Care and Pain Management -- The Palliative Care and Pain Treatment Gap -- Barriers to Palliative Care and Pain Treatment -- II. Survey Findings: Global Overview of Barriers to Pain Treatment -- Availability of Policies that Promote Palliative Care and Pain Treatment -- Training for Healthcare Workers -- Drug Availability -- Supply and Distribution System for Opioid Analgesics -- Drug Regulations -- Cost of Opioid Medications -- Best Practices: Addressing Barriers to Pain Treatment and Palliative Care through Comprehensive Reform -- Africa Map -- III. Sub-Saharan Africa -- Regional Overview -- Drug Availability -- Drug Regulations -- Best Practice and Reform Efforts: Uganda -- The Americas Map -- IV. The Americas -- Regional Overview -- Drug Availability -- Best Practice and Reform Efforts: Colombia -- The Middle East and North Africa Map -- V. The Middle East and North Africa -- Regional Overview -- Drug Availability -- Developing Palliative Care: Jordan -- Europe Map -- VI. Europe -- Regional Overview -- Drug Availability -- Best Practice and Reform Efforts: Romania -- Asia Map -- VII. Asia -- Regional Overview -- Drug Availability -- Developing Palliative Care: Vietnam -- VIII. International Human Rights Obligations and Pain Treatment -- Health as a Human Right -- Pain Treatment and the Right to the Highest Attainable Standard of Health -- Pain Treatment and the Right to Be Free from Cruel, Inhuman, and Degrading Treatment -- IX. Recommendations -- To Governments around the World -- General -- Ensuring an Effective Supply System -- Developing and Enacting Pain Management and Palliative Care Policies -- Ensuring Instruction for Healthcare Workers -- Reforming Drug Regulations -- Ensuring Affordability of Medications -- To Global Drug Policy Makers -- To the WHA, WHO, UNAIDS, and the Donor Community -- To the Global Human Rights Community -- X. Methodology -- Acknowledgements -- Appendix 1. List of Survey Participants -- Appendix 2. Survey Questions -- Appendix 3. Table of Calculations Used to Produce Maps.
Summary:
"Every year, tens of millions of people around the world suffer severe pain and other debilitating symptoms caused by illnesses like cancer and HIV/AIDS. Human Rights Watch interviews in several countries have documented suffering so intense that patients would often rather die than live with their pain. Almost all this suffering is unnecessary because pain medicines are safe, cheap, and effective and low-cost palliative care services could address severely ill patients' physical, psychological, and social needs. Yet in most countries availability of strong pain medicines is almost nonexistent and palliative care is a neglected health service. This violates the right to the highest attainable standard of health. This report uses publicly available data on the consumption of pain medicines to illustrate the enormous extent of unmet need for pain treatment. It also presents the results of a survey of healthcare workers in 40 countries regarding the main barriers to better pain treatment and palliative care. Global State of Pain Treatment calls upon governments to assess the need for pain treatment and palliative care in their own countries and to systematically identify and address barriers to access, in accordance with their obligations under international law. International organizations such as the World Health Organization and the United Nations drug control agencies should assist countries in their efforts to end unnecessary suffering from pain."--P. [4] of cover.
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