Diagnosis
- What is causing my pain?
- Is the pain likely to get better or worse?
Treatment
- What treatments do you recommend? What is the aim of each treatment?
- How long will the treatments take to work?
- How often should I take my medicine?
- Should I take extra doses if I still get pain?
- Are there other options if the medicine doesn’t work?
- Can you tell me about non-medicine treatments?
- Are there any complementary therapies that might help?
Side effects
- What are the risks and possible side effects of each treatment?
- How can the side effects be managed?
- Will the different medicines I’m taking interfere with each other?
- Will I be able to drive when I’m taking this medicine?
- Are there any precautions I need to take, such as not drinking alcohol?
- Will I get addicted to my pain medicine?
Practical concerns
- Who will manage my prescriptions?
- How much will my medicine cost? Can I reduce the cost of it?
- Will I keep seeing you about my pain relief, or will I see my GP or palliative care team?
- Who can I contact in an emergency?
- Who can I contact if I have questions when I am at home?
- How can I record my pain levels and any breakthrough pain?
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