Daniel S. Goldberg (East Carolina University) (yes, that's me) has a new article out in Perspectives in Biology & Medicine entitled, Job and the Stigmatization of Chronic Pain. Here is the Abstract:
Many ethical and policy analyses of the devastating undertreatment of chronic pain leave unaddressed the role played by stigma, even though the notion that such stigma exists is well documented. This article examines the social and cultural roots of the stigma of chronic pain in American society. I document the long history of illness stigma in Western societies as a way of illustrating the power of this meaning-making construct, and I use the Book of Job as a framework for understanding the deep link between sin and suffering in the context of illness and chronic pain in the United States. Unfortunately, while illness stigma can be ameliorated, there is little evidence of such progress in the undertreatment and stigmatization of chronic pain sufferers, and I explain some of the reasons why the best evidence does not demonstrate much improvement. I conclude by sketching some recommendations for diminishing the stigmatization of the chronic pain sufferer, and warn that the focus on altering the opioid regulatory regime is unlikely to have the desired impact in reducing the suffering of millions of Americans.
As readers of MH Blog likely know, the undertreatment of pain in the U.S. is the subject of my dissertation, and is a topic I have been working on for almost a decade now. This particular essay engages a topic that I could only touch on briefly in my dissertation, namely, chronic pain and stigma. Stigma, of course, is a crucial theme for the medical humanities.
Interested readers wishing a electronic copy are welcome to contact me privately.
Mr Goldberg- we need to hear more from people like yourself courageous enough to speak up on humanitarian issues that affect so many of us in the "postgenomic era" Kudos to you and please continue your efforts.
Posted by: dave | July 23, 2010 at 09:06 PM