Chronic Pain Self-Management Program Grantee Success Stories

According to the National Institutes of Health, pain affects more Americans than diabetes, heart disease, and cancer combined. It is a leading cause of disability and a major contributor to health care costs. The diversity of pain conditions requires a diversity of research and treatment approaches.

One such approach is the evidence-based Chronic Pain Self-Management Program (CPSMP), a community-based intervention delivered once a week for six weeks. The CPSMP is intended for people who have a primary or secondary diagnosis of chronic pain, with research demonstrating that participants have less pain, improved mental health, more energy, and increased satisfaction with their lives compared to those who have not taken the program.

Two of the Administration for Community Living’s (ACL) recently awarded Chronic Disease Self-Management Education grantees, Partners in Care Foundation (Partners) and the Utah Department of Health, are offering the CPSMP as part of their three-year grant program. In California, Partners is collaborating with organizations in Humboldt County, as this region is a “hot spot” for opioid prescribing. Los Angeles and Ventura Counties are also planning to target adults with opioid addiction for enrollment in CPSMP workshops.

In Utah, the Department of Health is collaborating with Intermountain Healthcare and other stakeholders to offer the CPSMP, the only community self-management program available for physician referrals to target those suffering from prescription opioid misuse. In addition to Intermountain Healthcare, University of Utah Community Clinics and Five County Association of Governments will also embed the CPSMP into their routine operations. Further, Utah State University’s Center for Persons with Disabilities is engaged in this project to address chronic pain among people with disabilities.

To learn more about the Chronic Pain Self-Management Program, visit the Self-Management Resource Center website: https://www.selfmanagementresource.com/programs/small-group/chronic-pain-self-management/.

To learn more about the efforts of Partners in Care Foundation, Utah Department of Health, and ACL’s other Chronic Disease Self-Management Education grantees, visit: https://www.acl.gov/node/427.