The Relationship between Culture, Pain Experience and Participation in Pain Management among Malaysian Patients after Breast Cancer Surgery

Abstract

Post-operative pain is one of the most common side-effects encountered by patients after their surgery, and more than 50% of patients experience mild to severe pain. Postoperative pain may be influenced by factors such as age, gender, psychological factors, pre-operative information and types of surgery. Additional factors that may be related to pain include culture and ethnicity, although understandings about their relationship have not been well expanded. Cultural practice is important as it may determine the patient’s way of dealing with his or her pain and influence participation in healthcare. This study aimed to determine the relationship between culture and patients’ pain experience, analgesic consumption and patients’ participation in their pain management after surgery. It focused on patients in Malaysia who had undergone breast cancer surgery, including patients who were ethnically Malay, Chinese and Indian. This study used a cross-sectional design and was conducted in two tertiary government hospitals in Malaysia. Eighty women who were undergoing breast cancer surgery were recruited into this study. The biocultural pain model was used as the theoretical framework for the study. The visual analogue scale was used for pain assessment, the control preferred scale was used to determine participants preferred role in pain management, and medication records were used to ascertain the participants’ analgesic consumption. Face-to-face interviews were used for data collection and were conducted at four time point phases: before the operation and 4, 24 and 48 hours after the operation.