Better pain care for nursing home residents with dementia
Testing the Pain-CPG-EIT
This project tries a way to help nursing home staff find and manage pain in people with moderate to severe dementia.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Maryland Baltimore NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11182621 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you or a loved one lives in a nursing home and has dementia that makes it hard to report pain, this project will roll out a pain-care guideline and extra support to help staff notice and treat pain. Staff will get training and tools to watch for facial expressions, agitation, or restlessness that can signal pain, and clinicians will use agreed treatment steps including medicines and non-drug options. Researchers will track whether pain is detected more often, whether treatments change, and whether behaviors and sleep or mood improve. The project will also look at differences by race, gender, and other factors to help ensure fair care.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are nursing home residents with moderate to severe dementia who have difficulty verbally reporting pain.
Not a fit: People without dementia, those who can reliably report their pain, or individuals not living in participating long-term care facilities are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to more accurate pain detection and better pain relief, reducing agitation and improving quality of life for people with dementia in nursing homes.
How similar studies have performed: There are evidence-based pain guidelines and some implementation efforts that improved care in parts, but results have been mixed and putting guidelines into everyday nursing home care remains challenging.
Where this research is happening
Baltimore, United States
- University of Maryland Baltimore — Baltimore, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Resnick, Barbara — University of Maryland Baltimore
- Study coordinator: Resnick, Barbara
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.