The Power over Pain Portal for Youth with Chronic Pain

iOuch Pain Research Lab, Child Health Evaluative Sciences, Research Institute, The Hospital for Sick Children The COVID-19 pandemic is one of the greatest threats to youth mental health in generations. Youth today report increased pain complaints, and without treatment, these will become chronic. Chronic pain (CP) currently affects 1 in 5 youth and has devastating impacts on families. The COVID-19 pandemic has made access to CP care more difficult. However, a “Stepped care” approach is a promising way to improve access, as it tailors care based on the severity of symptoms. The goal of the Power over Pain Portal was to develop a centralized virtual pain hub that empowers youth living with CP to engage with evidence-based pain interventions in a stepped-care manner. We did this in four phases. Surveys and interviews were first conducted with healthcare providers (Phase 1), as well as children with CP and their families (Phase 2) to determine the impacts of COVID-19. We then generated evidence to inform the rapid delivery of tailored stepped care solutions (Phase 3). Based on these findings, we co-created (with youth with CP) and designed the Power over Pain Portal (Phase 4), in the hopes of addressing these challenges and improving access to evidence based pain care. Our video presents the Power over Pain Portal as an online portal that empowers youth living with chronic pain to engage with evidence-based pain interventions in a stepped care manner. The gaps to evidence-based care identified by youth, and the co-design process will be discussed, as well as future considerations and the implementation of the Power over Pain Portal.