Ethics of Proper Pain Management: Legislative Amendment OAR 875-015-0030

Ethics of Proper
Pain Management:
Legislative Amendment
OAR 875-015-0030

As modern veterinary medicine progresses, changes
in standards of veterinary care improve. Over the last
year there have been significant changes to statutes
regarding the minimum standards veterinarians
must use for surgical procedures. The amended rule requires
provision of minimum levels of pain control and sedation. What
does this really mean…? When your pet comes in for any surgical
procedure such as spay, neuter, or dental your veterinarian must
use minimum pain management. The veterinarian cannot omit
this nor can the client decline it.

Some pet owners believe we as humans experience pain differently
than our four footed friends. This is a misnomer; animals
share the same physiological makeup that allows us to process
pain. It is also a misunderstanding that if an animal is anesthetized
they do not need pain control. Even when under anesthesia
our nervous systems are still working and processing pain associated
with tissue damage and inflammation.

There are a number of different methods or modes to alleviating
surgical pain. Multi-modal pain control is a combination of pain
medications that alleviate pain as well as the stress associated
with pain. It is the highest standard of care. At Animal Care Clinic,
our doctors are strong proponents of multi-modal pain management.
We use pain control drugs prior to and during surgery. We
administer nerve blocks over the surgical site and “send home”
pain medications to be used for the first few days following surgery.
It is proven that reducing pain and the body’s response to
it will provide quicker healing and comfort, minimizing the stress
and complications associated with surgical procedures.

The important thing to remember is that although this new
amendment requires veterinarians to use pain control for any
surgical procedure it does not regulate when or how much pain
control a veterinarian must use. It is the pet owner’s obligation
to find out if their pet is receiving the best pain management
for their procedure. The doctor and the owner must be the pet’s
advocate working together as a team.

For More Information
Please contact the
Animal Care Clinic
In Wilsonville at 503-682-1794