Grant: Travel Awards - Institute Community Support

Pain is the main symptom reported by persons with arthritis, with a quarter of them reporting frequent and severe joint pain. Persons with arthritis suffering from chronic pain often benefit from a pain management program delivered in pain clinics, as it helps reduce pain, depressive symptoms and opioid use, while improving function and quality of life. Previous research suggests that access to pain clinics in Canada is limited by long waiting lists, but this has not been studied specifically in patients with arthritis. The aims of this project were 1) to determine the waiting time to receive services in pain clinics for persons with arthritis in the province of Quebec and 2) to identify factors associated with longer waiting time. By analyzing the Quebec Pain Registry, a large database of patients who received services within pain clinics, this study found extensive waiting time for patients suffering from arthritis, with more than a third of them waiting over 6 months. Several factors were associated with a longer waiting time: longer pain duration, lower family income, having fibromyalgia, pain onset following a motor vehicle accident and being referred by a family physician (versus specialists). The results of this study will serve as a building block for future work aiming to ensure equitable access to pain clinics for persons with arthritis.