Pet pain management
is one of the least well developed aspects of veterinary medicine.
Research has long dispelled the old notion that dogs and cats don't feel
pain the way that people do. Their nerve structure and neurophysiology is
remarkably similar to those of humans. Most of the major pain management
principles were first discovered through animal research. Unfortunately, the average
veterinary practice has not yet developed an adequate understanding of the
key components that are necessary for proper pet pain control.
How seriously do we take pet pain? Dr. Stein
become only the fourth veterinarian in the United States to be
credentialed in pain management when he completed credentialing through
the American Academy of Pain Management in 2005. In 2007 Dr. Stein was
elected to the Presidency of the International
Academy of Pain Management. In addition, in 2006 he was appointed as
one of five Consultant Editors for the Anesthesia & Pain Management
Board on the Veterinary
Information Network, a 30,000+ member continuing education
organization for practicing veterinarians worldwide. Dr. Stein is also a member of the
American
Pain Society, The American
Society of Regional Anesthesia and Analgesia, the International
Association for the Study of Pain, and the American
Academy of Pain Management.
Dr. Stein has
taken the pain management knowledge that he has gained over the last 16
years and created a website solely devoted to helping
other veterinarians as they transition towards more humane pet health
care. The site is called the Veterinary Anesthesia and
Analgesia Support Group. WWW.VASG.ORG.
Dr. Stein began work on this project in 2003. Built primarily upon
material Dr. Stein wrote for our practice, the site now has been enhanced
by many contributions from like-minded veterinarians from around the
country and the world. The site is maintained and funded entirely by Dr.
Stein.
Click on the picture above to see a wonderful
video detailing the importance of pet pain control. This video was
produced by the International
Veterinary Academy of Pain Management.
As an extension of our pain management expertise
we have launched a separate practice devoted entirely to enhancing patient
quality of life and longer life expectancy. The Animal Pain Management
Center (APMC) incorporates conventional pain management techniques and
medications with physical rehabilitation therapy and acupuncture with
herbal medications. Dr. Stein graduated from the Chi
Institute TCVM Small Animal Acupuncture Program in 2006 and the Canine
Rehabilitation Institute Canine Rehabilitation Program in 2007. Our
head nurse, Stephanie Ortel, graduated from the University
Of Tennessee Canine Rehabilitation Program in 2007.
Click
here to go to the Animal Pain Management Center website.
