What is Patient Controlled Analgesia (PCA)?
Patient Controlled Analgesia, or PCA for short, is a pump that lets you decide when you will get a dose of pain medication. The PCA machine is a medical device that allows delivery of small consists of a bag of pain medication next to your bed. Th machine is connected to a lead with a button at the end that you can press to administer the medication. Your doctor, nurses or the pain team will discuss PCA with you before you begin to use it.
Your pain management is very important to make you as comfortable as possible and to aid your recovery.
How does PCA work?
When the light on your button is green this means you can press it to release pain medication into your system.
When the light on your button is red this is the ‘lock-out’ period, meaning you must wait for 5 minutes before you can safely release another dose of medication into your system.
These lights work to ensure that you cannot give yourself too much pain medication, keeping it at safe levels in your body.
What are the benefits of PCA?
• Smaller doses of pain medication, more often
• No need to wait for a member of staff to give you your pain medication
• Works quickly
• Easy to use
Is PCA safe?
The ‘lock-out’ period of 5 minutes stops a dose of medicine being released even if you have pressed the button. This means that the pump is programmed to ignore any further pushes of the button for 5 minutes so that you cannot give yourself more medication than is safe.
Are there any side effects?
You may experience some side effects while using the PCA including feeling drowsy or sick. If you experience any side effects please tell your nurse as there are medications that they can give you to reduce them.
You may also experience constipation while using PCA for which the nurses will give you laxatives as soon as you are able to eat and drink again after your surgery.
How long do I use PCA for?
You may use PCA for a few days and then as you feel your pain reducing it will be time to move you to another form of pain medication such as tablet or liquid medication. Your doctor will discuss this with you when you both feel you are ready.
You can then be unhooked from PCA and start moving around more to aid your recovery.
If you feel that your pain is not being managed adequately then please speak to your nurse or doctor. They will adjust your pain management accordingly.
Myth Busting:
Will I become addicted?
It is very unlikely that you will become addicted to PCA. The pump gives you very small amounts of pain medication and there is a maximum level that you can administer your self in order to avoid risk of addiction.
Can I overdose?
You cannot overdose on PCA. The nurses will set your maximum dose of pain medication to a safe level for you. The ‘lock-out’ system also works to avoid you releasing too much pain medication into your system.
MEET THE PAIN TEAM:
If you have any questions about your PCA then you can ask any of the clinical staff on the critical care unit. In addition to this you will also be visited by a specialist nurse from the pain team each day while you have your PCA device.