Chronic Pain Service

Formerly Counties Manukau Health Cardiology

Chronic pain is usually described as pain lasting greater than 6 months. Chronic pain may or may not be associated with a disease or injury. It often lasts longer than expected for the usual course of a disease or injury. Chronic pain reduces a person's ability to function and impacts on their quality of life and emotional wellbeing.

More than 20% of New Zealanders experience chronic pain and the impact of pain often extends to family and friends.

Some of the most common chronic pain conditions are:

• Musculoskeletal pain disorders e.g. chronic back pain, chronic neck or shoulder pain, fibromyalgia
• Neuropathic pain
• Phantom limb pain
• Headache
• Facial Pain
• Atypical chest pain(s)
• Abdominal pain with or without Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS)
• Pelvic pain/endometriosis

The Chronic Pain Service is part of the Counties Manukau Health Department of Anaesthesia and Pain Medicine.  It aims to provide quality chronic pain assessment and intervention that is accessible and appropriate for the people of Counties Manukau. 

The Chronic Pain Service (CPS) includes professionals from a wide range of disciplines.  They all have experience in assessment and management of pain from their professional perspective.  The CPS team may include Anaesthetist, Nurse, Physiotherapists, Psychiatrist, Psychologists and musculoskeletal consultant.

Our aim is to restore functional ability and enable individuals to live as independently as possible, despite their pain.

Pain management involves learning different ways of thinking and acting so that pain interferes less with life.  A self-management approach requires an individual and their whanau to play an active role in their pain management and emphasizes an improvement in quality of life and function, rather than a cure.

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