Pain is a common problem for which patients seek care in the emergency
department (ED), accounting for up to 42% of all ED visits (Grover
et al., 2012). Six of the seven chief complaints among a sample of frequent
users in ED chart reviews were pain related (Milbrett and Halm,
2009). McLeod and Nelson (2013) found that people make decisions
to present to the emergency department because of exacerbation of
pain, inadequate coping strategies, or disease severity and desperation
that is associated with stress and anxiety.