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Dr. Henri Roca & a Whole-Person Approach to Chronic Pain
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Research suggests that the complex medical needs of chronic pain patients may not be wholly met by a prescription for opioids or an NSAID alternative.1,2 Chronic pain has been increasingly recognized as a biopsychosocial condition, and many clinicians find that a personalized multimodal interdisciplinary treatment approach is preferred over medication only.3,4 Studies strongly support a biopsychosocial basis to all pain, even pediatric chronic pain; the subjective experience of chronic pain is believed to result from interactions between multiple contributors, including nociceptive, affective, sociocultural, behavioral, and cognitive.4,5
The development and persistence of chronic pain involves long-term changes in multiple integrated peripheral, spinal, and brain regions interacting in a complex way to shape the individual’s experience.5 It is not a purely physical or psychological phenomenon.5
In the extended video below, functional medicine clinician Henri Roca, MD, discusses his approach to chronic pain and explores those tools that help empower patients in their healing journey.
While there is support for the application of biopsychosocial perspectives in the treatment of chronic pain cases, such perspectives may be overlooked due to either inadequate training or attitudes favoring a biomedical approach.6 In one survey, both established general practitioners and medical students were shown to account for some psychosocial factors when making clinical judgments regarding chronic pain cases; however, they reported not being likely to apply these in real-world, clinical settings due to numerous factors, including available time with patients.6
Yet spending time with a pain patient during the “interview” period has been called the cornerstone of the physical examination, diagnosis, plan of care, prognosis, and overall efficacy of the therapeutic experience.7 Pain researchers suggest that a patient interview is far more than just collecting information.7 That initial meeting is a critical component to establishing an alliance with a patient.7
Functional medicine clinician Henri Roca, MD, understands that health behaviors are born within family, community, and social systems. He tells his patients that everything that has ever happened to them brings them to the health they have today and that each choice they make today creates the foundation upon which they can build the health they desire.
“So I have to see the whole person. I have to get to the root cause. I have to honor their life story, and I have to use everything that works to help bring the person to their best place of health.”
Dr. Roca is skilled at interpreting interconnecting webs of cause and effect to get to underlying root causes of chronic pain, and his unique way of connecting with patients has helped him form myriad effective therapeutic relationships. “I practice integrative functional medicine. That’s the only way I can do medicine,” says Dr. Roca.
In addition to his current position as a senior director of Whole Health Communities within the Whole Health Institute, Dr. Roca continues his work as medical director at One Medicine Wellness Services in Arkansas. In his clinical practice, he offers an individualized approach to health and disease, recognizing the interaction and importance of every aspect of a person’s life—mind, body, and spirit. Learn more about tools and strategies to help patients achieve sustainable lifestyle change and improve their well-being through IFM’s Applying Functional Medicine in Clinical Practice (AFMCP) course.
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References
- Whitten CE, Donovan M, Cristobal K. Treating chronic pain: new knowledge, more choices. Perm J. 2005;9(4):9-18. doi:7812/tpp/05-067
- Tennant F. Intractable pain patients who have been unresponsive to standard treatments. J Pain. 2014;15(4):S92. doi:1016/j.jpain.2014.01.378
- Ramond-Roquin A, Bouton C, Bègue C, Petit A, Roquelaure Y, Huez JF. Psychosocial risk factors, interventions, and comorbidity in patients with non-specific low back pain in primary care: need for comprehensive and patient-centered care. Front Med. 2015;2:73. doi:3389/fmed.2015.00073
- Cohen SP, Vase L, Hooten WM. Chronic pain: an update on burden, best practices, and new advances. Lancet. 2021;397(10289):2082-2097. doi:1016/S0140-6736(21)00393-7
- Liossi C, Howard RF. Pediatric chronic pain: biopsychosocial assessment and formulation. Pediatrics. 2016;138(5):e20160331. doi:1542/peds.2016-0331
- Dwyer CP, McKenna-Plumley PE, Durand H, et al. Factors influencing the application of a biopsychosocial perspective in clinical judgement of chronic pain: interactive management with medical students. Pain Physician. 2017;20(6):E951-E960.
- Diener I, Kargela M, Louw A. Listening is therapy: patient interviewing from a pain science perspective. Physiother Theory Pract.2016;32(5):356-367. doi:1080/09593985.2016.1194648
