Management principles

To achieve the best possible patient outcomes, a set of guiding principles for managing heel pain are suggested.

The following principles are based on the three pillars of best practice (Herbert, Jamvedt, Hagen & Mead, 2011):

1. patient preferences
2. expert opinion
3. high quality evidence

Principles overview

1. View the patient through the biopsychosocial model of health (M. Cotchett, personal communication, October 31, 2019)
2. Discuss the causes or contributing factors of the condition which are relevant to your patient, and check their understanding (Cotchett, 2019).
3. Provide education about pain mechanisms and highlight how mental health can influence pain, at the first appointment (M. Cotchett, personal communication, October 31, 2019)
4. Reduce pain to a manageable level any way possible, then commence a graded return to activity (M. Cotchett, personal communication, October 31, 2019)
5. Follow the best-practice guide treatment pathway, including the core approach
6. Outline potential risks, proposed benefits, costs and supporting evidence for various treatment options and be guided by your patient’s preferences (Morrissey et al., 2019)
7. Manage expectations by providing an overview of the general prognosis and treatment pathways
8. Empower the patient to self-manage and involve them in creating a plan for the short, medium and long term (Cotchett, 2019)
9. Provide written or other resources highlighting key information for patients to take home (Cotchett, 2019)