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September 2023 Sep 2023
Posted September 07, 2023
Given the challenges that distance poses across the New England region, the Tamworth Integrated Pain Service ‘TIPS’ team will now be taking some of their programs out to rural hubs to facilitate patient access to specialist healthcare.
The first ‘Understanding Pain’ Seminar and Assessment Workshop will be convened in Narrabri in September and Armidale in October. These programs will continue into 2024 pending patient uptake.
TIPS was developed in 2013 as an integrated model of care for both acute inpatient and chronic non-cancer outpatient pain management. Located at Tamworth Rural Referral Hospital and comprising a multidisciplinary team of health professionals, TIPS provides a pain management service to all communities of the New England region.
The principal pathway into the service is via a group program. The chronic pain group programs promote a ‘whole person’ approach, supporting patients and their families/carers to embrace acceptance and change, whilst building on skills that lead to a better quality of life.
TIPS also offers multidisciplinary team assessment where appropriate, medication review, patient phone support with opioid deprescribing, and telehealth consultation with the team and GP/patient.
TIPS Community HealthPathways are available to GPs in Primary Care for the assessment of chronic pain and patient referral to the service (using the NSW Health State Referral Form) Specialised Pain Management Referrals .
TIPS can be contacted by phone on (02) 6767 7125 and referrals are preferred using SeNT eReferrals.
(Author: Vickie Croker, TIPS Clinical Nurse Consultant / Operations Manager).
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