European Collaboration Enhances Migraine Treatment Strategies
A researcher from the University of Southern Denmark and Esbjerg and Grindsted Hospitals is leading the development of new European recommendations for the nursing care of migraine patients
Migraine ranks among the most prevalent types of headaches, impacting approximately 15% of adults.
Nurses are crucial in managing headaches, including migraines. A recent European collaboration has resulted in the creation of expert-based recommendations for this area, promising improved and more consistent treatment for patients at headache centres.
-With these recommendations in place, we aim to deepen our research into the crucial role of nursing in migraine treatment, explains Louise Schlosser Mose, Associate professor at the Department of Regional Health Research and Esbjerg and Grindsted Hospital.
Migraine
Migraine manifests as attacks that typically include headaches accompanied by symptoms such as nausea and sensitivity to sound and light.
Migraines significantly diminish quality of life and increase sick leave, accounting for 14% of all such absences in the working population. Economically, migraines cost 420 million kroner annually in treatments and result in 1.2 billion kroner of lost production.
Nurses are Central to Patient Support
At European headache centres, patients frequently encounter a nurse during their consultation, with the roles and responsibilities of these nurses now being more clearly defined.
The recommendations are founded on what is known as a Delphi study design. This involves experts in a particular field - here, migraine - reviewing existing practices and suggesting new ones through multiple rounds of questions. They make ongoing adjustments until there is consensus among the experts regarding the tasks and roles that characterise nursing.
In the area of migraine, this has resulted in a detailed outline of the nurse's roles and tasks in clinical practice, as well as an explanation of the educational component: specifically, how nurses effectively prepare patients to cope with living with migraine.
-For patients, this means that we, as nurses, now possess a clinical tool that structures consultations and patient education, while also enhancing quality. With this shared foundation, we can further refine and adapt our nursing practices for the benefit of patients, explains Louise Schlosser Mose.
The recommendations are already benefiting patients.
About the study
Nurses and neurologists from 18 specialised headache centres across 10 European countries have participated in the study.
The study has developed a clinical tool designed as a checklist for use during consultations at these centres.
This tool details methods for recording a patient’s medical history and provides guidelines on the frequency and length of consultations. Additionally, it describes how nurses with expertise in migraine should educate both patients and their healthcare colleagues.
Meet the Researcher
Louise Schlosser Mose is an Associate professor at the Department of Regional Health Research and at Esbjerg and Grindsted Hospital. She conducts clinically oriented research and involves both patients and other health professionals in her studies.
Read the study
“Consensus recommendations on the role of nurses in headache care: A European e-Delphi study” has been published in the journal Cephalalgia.