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Severity, Time of Pain, and Other Questions

Author: Sophia

what's covered
In this lesson, you will learn how to ask for more information about the pain a patient is experiencing. Specifically, this lesson will cover:
  1. Severidad (Severity)
  2. Tiempo (Time)
  3. Re-evaluación (Reassessment)
  4. Otras Preguntas Relacionadas con el Dolor (Other Pain-Related Questions)

1. Severidad (Severity)

First, you need to be able to determine how severe the patient’s pain is. The following chart provides some language you can use to ask the patient to rate the severity of their pain.

English Spanish Pronunciation
Rate the pain on a 1-10 scale with 10 being the worst pain ever. Califique su dolor en la escala del uno al diez, donde diez es el peor. kah-lee-fee-kay soo doe-lore ain lah ace-kah-lah dale oo-no ahl dee-ace doan-day dee-ace ale pay-ore
one uno This is a patient response.
two dos This is a patient response.
three tres This is a patient response.
four cuatro This is a patient response.
five cinco This is a patient response.
six seis This is a patient response.
seven siete This is a patient response.
eight ocho This is a patient response.
nine nueve This is a patient response.
ten diez This is a patient response.


2. Tiempo (Time)

You will also need to know how long the patient has been experiencing the pain. The following chart provides language that you can use to inquire about the time of pain.

English Spanish Pronunciation
When did the pain start? ¿Cuándo comenzó su dolor? k’wahn-doe koh-main-so soo doe-lore
(#) hours ago. Hace (#) horas. This is a patient response.
(#) days ago. Hace (#) días. This is a patient response.
(#) weeks ago. Hace (#) semanas. This is a patient response.
It began yesterday. Comenzó ayer. This is a patient response.
It began last night. Comenzó anoche. This is a patient response.
It began last week. Comenzó la semana pasada. This is a patient response.
How long did it last? ¿Cuánto duró su dolor? k’wahn-toe doo-row soo doe-lore
It lasted (#) hours. Duró (#) horas This is a patient response.
It lasted (#) days. Duró (#) días. This is a patient response.
It lasted (#) weeks. Duró (#) semanas. This is a patient response.
Has it recurred? ¿Le ocurrió de nuevo? lay oh-koo-ree-oh day noo-ay-bow
Yes. Sí. This is a patient response.
No. No. This is a patient response.


3. Re-evaluación (Reassessment)

If you are following up on a previous visit, you can use the questions below to ask if the patient's pain has improved since the last time.

English Spanish Pronunciation
Did the medication make the pain better? ¿El medicamento mejoró su dolor? k’wahn-doe koh-main-so soo doe-lore
Did the change in position make the pain better? ¿El cambio en la posición mejoró su dolor? ale kahm-bee-oh ain lah po-see-see-own may-ho-row soo doe-lore
Did the therapy make the pain better? ¿La terapia mejoró su dolor? ah tay-rah-pee-ah may-ho-row soo doe-lore
Yes. Sí. This is a patient response.
No. No. This is a patient response.
A little. Un poco. This is a patient response.


4. Otras Preguntas Relacionadas con el Dolor (Other Pain-Related Questions)

The following are additional questions you can ask to learn more about a patient's pain.

English Spanish Pronunciation
Have you had a recent accident? ¿Ha tenido un accidente recientemente? ah tay-nee-doe oon ak-see-dain-tay ray-see-ain-tay-main-tay
Yes. Sí. This is a patient response.
I fell down. Me caí. This is a patient response.
I had a car wreck. Tuve un choque de carro. This is a patient response.
No. No. This is a patient response.
Do you have a family history of high blood pressure, stroke, or heart disease? ¿Tiene un historial familiar de alta presión de la sangre, ataques, o enfermedades del corazón? tee-ay-nay oon ee-store-ee-all fah-mee-lee-ahr day all-tah pray-see-own day lah sahn-gray ah-tah-kace oh ain-fair-may-dah-dace dale ko-rah-soan
No. No. This is a patient response.
Yes, of... (one of the above) Sí, de… This is a patient response.
Yes, my (family member) has… Sí, mi (family member) tiene… This is a patient response.
mother / father madre / padre This is a patient response.
grandfather / grandmother abuelo / abuela This is a patient response.
brother / sister hermano / hermana This is a patient response.
son / daughter hijo / hija This is a patient response.
uncle / aunt tío / tía This is a patient response.
cousin primo / prima This is a patient response.
Call me if you need any pain medicine. Llámeme si necesita algún medicamento para el dolor. yah-may-may see nay-say-see-tah all-goon may-dee-kah-main-toe pah-rah ale doe-lore
What have you been doing to ease the discomfort? ¿Qué ha estado haciendo para calmar el dolor? kay ah ay-stah-doe ah-see-ain-doe pah-rah call-mar ale doe-lore
Would you like to take some pain medication? ¿Le gustaría tomar medicamento para el dolor? lay goose-tah-ree-ah toe-mar may-dee-kah-main-toe pah-rah ale doe-lore
I am going to give you a shot for your pain. Voy a tratar su dolor con una inyección. boy ah trah-tar sue doe-lore cone oo-nah een-yake-see-own
I will need to examine you to try to see why you are experiencing pain. Tendré que examinarlo para tratar de ver por qué está teniendo esos dolores. tain-dray kay ake-sah-me-nahr pah-rah trah-tar day bear pour kay ace-tah tay-knee-ain-doe ay-sohs doe-lore-ace
How can I make you more comfortable now? ¿Qué puedo hacer para que se sienta mejor ahora? kay p’way-doe ah-sare pah-rah kay say see-ain-tah may-hor ah-oh-rah
You could give / bring me… Puede darme / traerme… This is a patient response.
medicine la medicina This is a patient response.
ice pack la compresa fría This is a patient response.
heating pad la compresa calor This is a patient response.
You could allow me… Puede permitirme… This is a patient response.
to rest descansar This is a patient response.
to change position cambiarme de posición This is a patient response.

summary
In this lesson, you learned some important phrases and questions you can use to discuss the severity of patients' pain, as well as the length of time for which they have been experiencing that pain and how to reassess it on a follow-up visit. You also learned some other pain-related questions that will help you get more of the information you need from patients in order to best advise them.

¡Buena suerte!

Support

If you are struggling with a concept or terminology in the course, you may contact SpanishforNursesSupport@capella.edu for assistance.

If you are having technical issues, please contact learningcoach@sophia.org.

Source: This content has been adapted from "Spanish for Nurses" by Stephanie Langston.