Increasing Equity in Pain Management, Substance Use Disorder Treatment, and Linkages to CARE

● Refer to the Trauma-informed Care in Behavioral Health Services: Treatment Improvement Protocol (TIP) Series 57 (page 28) for a list of strengths-oriented questions ❚ Consider how the care team can reinforce patient strengths and resilience ● How can you help a patient see their own strengths and worth? ● How can you empower a patient to access their strengths in order to navigate and manage their health concerns? ❚ Keep in mind the following strategies and principles ● Remember that patients are more than their circumstances and their medical condition, and that they are complete and complex human beings ● Realize that it is often necessary to first build the patient clinician relationship and gain trust before the patient will share their strengths and values ● Recognize that patients often overcome multiple barriers just to see their provider, and that this shows resilience and determination ● Recognize that patients may come from communities that face great adversity and marginalization, and that these communities often demonstrate strength and resilience ● Acknowledge that the health care system needs to become more resilient and flexible to accommodate patients ● Consider co-facilitating support groups in order to help level the power imbalance between clinicians and patients, and to make time to hear more about patients’ lives ❚ Build the care plan based on patient strengths and goals ● Ask the patient about their health goals, priorities, and what they most value ● Learn how each patient defines wellbeing ● Do not assume that your goals for the patient’s wellness are the same as the patient’s goals ● Create the care plan in collaboration with the patient ● Build the care plan based on the patient’s individual strengths, community assets, values, goals, and priorities ● Avoid letting your own expertise take over the need to keep the patient front and center ● Partner with the patient to identify potential barriers to achieving their health goals, and help the patient access services to navigate those barriers

Kevonya Elzia describes her process of using a strengths-based approach with patients who are struggling with chronic pain or substance use.

Sharad Kohli describes how clinician participation in support groups can lead to more patient-centered care.

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