What is the Acute Pain Service?
The Acute Pain Service (APS) is a specialist in-patient consultation service at GCUH and Robina that supports the management of short-term pain during a hospital stay. We work closely with your treating team to provide safe, effective and individualised pain care. Our team includes specialist doctors and nurses with expertise in pain management.
What we do
The APS focuses on short-term (acute) pain, including:
- Pain after surgery or procedures
- Pain related to injury or trauma
- Pain that is difficult to control with standard treatments
How do we manage pain
We use a multimodal approach to pain relief, which may include:
- Non-medicine strategies such as movement, positioning, or ice/heat
- Non-opioid medicines (such as paracetamol or anti-inflammatory medicines where appropriate)
- Opioid medicines when needed
- Regional or local anaesthetic techniques
- Pain management plans are regularly reviewed and adjusted as you recover.
Safe use of opioid medicines
We follow national opioid analgesic stewardship standards to ensure opioids are used safely.
This means:
- Opioids are not always the first or best option
- When used, opioids are prescribed at the lowest effective dose and for the shortest possible time
- Patients are closely monitored for effectiveness and side effects
- Opioids are reduced or stopped as pain improves
Before discharge, we aim to minimise the ongoing use and provide clear instructions if opioids are still required.
Access to the service
- APS reviews are requested by hospital treating teams
- The service is available to in-patients only
- External referrals are not accepted
For pain concerns outside hospital admission, please speak to your GP or treating specialist.
