Purpose and scope
The purpose of this fourth edition guideline is to provide nurses and members of the interprofessional team with evidence-based guidance for the prevention, assessment and management of all types of pain across the lifespan.
This BPG is to be used by nurses and members of the interprofessional team across the health care continuum and in all domains of practice caring for persons at risk of or currently experiencing pain. It is also to be used by employers including health service organizations and academic institutions.
Get started
Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (2025). Pain: Prevention, assessment and management (fourth edition). Toronto, ON: Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario.
Recommendations
Do you want to learn about and implement the most- up-to-date evidence-based recommendations on this topic with your colleagues? Download and share the full best practice guideline (BPG), Pain: Prevention, assessment and management, Fourth edition.
See below for a snapshot of the recommendations from this BPG. We strongly suggest you review the full BPG before implementing the recommendations and good practice statements. The BPG also includes further resources to support implementation and evaluation.
Good practice statement 1.0: It is good practice for all health providers to conduct initial and ongoing screening and assessment for pain with people in their care. Pain assessment includes a comprehensive, evidence-based assessment using a person- and family-centred care approach.
Good practice statement 2.0: It is good practice to provide an integrative approach to pain prevention, assessment and management. An integrative approach (i.e., non-pharmacological and/or pharmacological strategies) includes individualized, person- and family-centred care
Good practice statement 3.0: It is good practice for health service organizations and health systems to implement an interprofessional practice approach to pain prevention, assessment and management.
Recommendation 1.0: The expert panel suggests that health service organizations provide access to a specialized interprofessional pain care team for the prevention, assessment and management of pain for people experiencing acute or chronic pain.
Good practice statement 4.0: It is good practice for academic institutions to provide comprehensive education for students entering health professions on pain prevention, assessment and management.
Recommendation 2.0: The expert panel suggests that academic institutions implement interactive education for all students entering health professions on pain prevention, assessment and management.
Good practice statement 5.0: It is good practice for health service organizations to provide interprofessional and discipline-specific education for all health providers on comprehensive pain prevention, assessment and management.
Recommendation 3.0: The expert panel suggests that health service organizations implement opportunities for interactive education for all health providers on pain prevention, assessment and management.
Disclaimer: These guidelines are not binding for nurses, other health providers or the organizations that employ them. The use of these guidelines should be flexible and based on individual needs and local circumstances. They constitute neither a liability nor discharge from liability. While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the contents at the time of publication, neither the authors nor the Registered Nurses’ Association of Ontario (RNAO) gives any guarantee as to the accuracy of the information contained in them or accepts any liability with respect to loss, damage, injury or expense arising from any such errors or omission in the contents of this work.
