We Refute the Notion that the Future of Psychological Assessment and Treatment Will be Wholly ‘Digital’

We need a future where there is room for the type of highly personalized approach to pain assessment and treatment embodied by the personal interactions between a patient with pain and a pain clinician.  This is especially true in working with those patients who are of most concern, i.e. those who have long histories of disabling pain and who have failed to respond to multiple prior treatment approaches.  Working with patients having complex pain histories depends on building trust and developing and maintaining a strong relationship.  The therapeutic alliance that occurs is enhanced with working with a clinician who is warm, genuine, and compassionate.   These conditions are maximized during traditional face to face encounters.  A strong therapeutic alliance not only contributes to patients’ sense that a clinician is competent, but also promotes adherence to therapeutic recommendations, a key challenge among patients who have experienced prior treatment failures.