Treatment and management options

Treatment and Management
Description: The voice over is here to help you understand your treatment and management process
So, you're going to the doctor with your pain. What now?
The doctor will ask you a lot of questions, some that might seem odd. They’re just trying to rule things out to make sure you get to talk about what matters.
Will the doctor tell me what’s wrong?
They’ll do their best, but they might not always be able to give you a name or a diagnosis. Only 1 in 10 young people with pain will need a diagnosis from their GP– which is normal, not all pains have names!
This isn’t a problem though! Your pain doesn’t need a name for the doctor to start working towards helping you.
What do I have to do at the doctors?
Your voice is so important here! There are no right or wrong answers, the doctor just needs to hear about you.
You’ll get around ten to fifteen minutes with the doctor when you go
You’ll have questions to answer and might be asked to describe what’s going on with you and your pain.
Everyone is there for you – this is your time.
What sort of treatment will I be given? Will I have to take medicine?
Only 1 in 5 young people with pain will need a prescription for pain medicine from their GP. If you are prescribed medicine, it's important to remember to take it exactly as advised by the doctor and the pharmacist.
A lot of the time, you will be given advice on managing your pain, or perhaps you will be "referred" to a more specialised area of healthcare.
Will I have to go to the hospital?
This all depends on what the doctor thinks is causing your pain. 1 in 4 young people visiting the GP for pain need to be referred to more specialised healthcare. Most will be sent for physiotherapy - specialists who give treatments that can help with pain and help people move. This may include exercises, manual therapy (hands on physical treatment) or advice that will teach you ways of moving that can help with your pain.
Other 'referrals' might be to: paediatricians (doctors who specialise in children's health), rheumatologists (doctors who specialise in conditions affecting the joints and muscles and bones) and orthopaedic consultant (doctors who specialise in surgery of bones, joints and muscles).


