Objectives: This study aimed to investigate the pain situation, functional limitations, treatment used, care-seeking behaviors, and educational preferences of adults with pain in mainland China. Methods: An online questionnaire was developed through expert validation, and participants were recruited via social media platforms. Inclusion criteria required having access to the Internet and smartphones, while individuals with significant cognitive impairments or severe mental illness were excluded. Results: 1566 participants, predominantly male (951) with a mean age of 30.24, were included. A total of 80.1% of the respondents reported experiencing pain, with over half suffering from chronic pain. Pain primarily affects the neck, lower back, and upper back, especially chronic low back pain. Pain significantly impacted various aspects of life, including mood, physical activity, work performance, family dynamics, and social relationships, particularly among chronic pain sufferers (p-value: < 0.001). Analgesics (66.9%) and self-management (80–94.3%) were the most used pain management strategies, with respondents with chronic pain reporting higher usage and effectiveness of medication than those with acute pain (p-value: < 0.001). Participants also expressed a greater interest in online education and psychotherapy interventions, especially through mobile applications. Conclusions: Chronic pain is highly prevalent in mainland China, leading to emotional distress, decreased work competency, and social isolation, with a strong demand for pain education through smartphone applications.

This study used a mixed-method approach to evaluate the effects of a standardized patient-based simulation on the management of patients with dementia by generation Z psychiatric nursing students (N = 120). Participant knowledge increased significantly after the program; all participants achieved nursing competency. One theme emerged regarding negative feelings during face-to-face communication with strangers. The findings suggest that the simulation was effective for teaching dementia care and meeting the learning needs of generation Z students.

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has had profound psychophysiological and socioeconomic effects worldwide. COVID-19 anxiety syndrome (CAS) is a specific cluster of maladaptive coping strategies, including perseveration and avoidance behaviours, in response to the perceived threat and fear of COVID-19. CAS is distinct from general COVID-19 anxiety. The level of CAS in the postpandemic era remained unknown. Despite extensive research on general COVID-19 anxiety and COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy (CVH), few studies have investigated the association between CAS and CVH. The present study aimed to assess the level of CAS and the prevalence of CVH and explore the association between CAS and CVH in the general population of Hong Kong. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted in Hong Kong. Participants were recruited using convenience and snowball sampling methods and completed an online or a paper-based questionnaire comprising two well-validated instruments. The COVID-19 Anxiety Syndrome Scale (C-19ASS), which includes the C-19ASS-P and C-19ASS-A subscales, was used to evaluate CAS in terms of perseveration and avoidance behaviours. The COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Scale (CVHS) was used to determine the presence of CVH. Results: This study included 389 participants. The median C-19ASS-P and C-19ASS-A scores were 8 (Interquartile range (IQR) 5–13) and 3 (IQR 0–6), respectively. The CVHS scores revealed a CVH prevalence of 68.1%. A significantly larger proportion of participants with CVH rated “hesitant” compared with those without CVH across all the CVHS items. Furthermore, the median C-19ASS-P and C-19ASS-A scores were significantly higher for participants without CVH than for those with CVH. Conclusions: Our findings revealed that CAS persists and CVH is common in the postpandemic era and that CAS is associated with CVH. Comprehensive interventions addressing both informational and psychological aspects are needed to increase the rate of vaccine acceptance and to mitigate the effect of CAS on public health outcomes.

Background: The demand for digitally supported chronic pain management has grown. Yet, the employment of a well-structured and sustainable program for older adults is limited due to insufficient research studies involving both older adults and their informal caregivers. Objective: This cluster randomized controlled trial evaluated the effectiveness of a Dyadic Pain Management (DPM) program, with the primary outcome of pain intensity. Secondary outcomes included pain interference, pain self-efficacy, activities of daily living, pain knowledge, psychological symptoms (depression, anxiety, stress), and caregiver burden. Methods: A cluster randomized controlled trial was conducted with 150 dyads (community-dwelling older adults with chronic non-cancer pain and their informal caregivers) over 8 weeks. The intervention comprised 4 weeks of on-campus group sessions followed by 4 weeks of WhatsApp-based support, while the control group received lesson pamphlets. Outcomes were assessed at baseline (T0), week 8 (T1), and week 16 (T2). Results: Statistically significant improvements in pain outcomes were observed in the intervention group compared with the control group over follow-up. Between-group differences were significant for pain intensity (primary outcome) and pain interference, and pain self-efficacy also improved. Significant between-group differences were also observed for depression, anxiety, and stress after the intervention, and caregiver burden was lower in the intervention group at follow-up. Conclusions: These findings suggest that a dyadic, non-pharmacological pain management program with a WhatsApp-based component may support improvements in pain- and psychosocial-related outcomes among community-dwelling older adults with chronic pain and their informal caregivers.