It is necessary to continue to inform patients and nurses about the need for analgesics after surgery. Such education could also emphasise that a discrepancy between a patient's reported pain score and the nurse's own assessment of the patient's pain should prompt a discussion with the patient about his/her pain.

Nurses should not rely solely on the NRS score in determining pain treatment; they need to communicate with older patients about their pain, the need for analgesics and eventual misconceptions about analgesics.

Home healthcare nurses should profit as a professional from gaining more knowledge of medication frequently used by older people.

No abstract