Regional anesthesia and pain medicine
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Reg Anesth Pain Med · Jun 2021
CommentDaring discourse: should acute pain medicine be a stand-alone service?
Acute pain medicine (APM) has been incorporated into healthcare systems in varied manners with some practices implementing a stand-alone acute pain service (APS) staffed by consultants who are not simultaneously providing care in the operating room (OR). In contrast, other practices have developed a concurrent OR-APS model where there is no independent team beyond the intraoperative care providers. ⋯ In this daring discourse, we present two opposing perspectives on whether or not APM should be a stand-alone service. While evidence to guide best practice is limited, our goal is to encourage discussion of the varied APS practice models and research into their impact on outcomes and costs.