The Progressive Goal Attainment Program, or PGAP as it is known, was developed by Dr. Michael Sullivan, a physiatrist in Montreal, Canada after 20+ years of research with chronic pain patients.  His research regarding the relationship between pain and disability found that over 80% of money spent is on symptom management.  He found that symptom-focused interventions do not necessarily yield reductions in disability. In fact, as time passes, if patients get stuck in symptom focused interventions, the clinical problem can become a lifestyle problem.

In a 2010 study, published in Physiotherapy Canada, Dr. Sullivan et. al found that patients who participated in the psychosocial intervention of PGAP in addition to physiotherapy showed significantly greater reductions in pain, fear of movement, and depression than patients who received only physiotherapy intervention. The psychosocial intervention was delivered by physiotherapists and designed to target catastrophic thinking, fear of pain, perceived disability, and depression.  Reductions in psychosocial risk factors contributed to reduced use of the health care system, reduced use of pain medication, and improved return-to-work outcomes. The findings of the study suggest that a psychosocial intervention provided by physiotherapists can lead to meaningful reductions in psychosocial risk factors for pain and disability and may contribute to more positive rehabilitation outcomes.

The PGAP program must be provided by a certified therapist.  It consists of 10 sessions, attended once a week, for 10 consecutive weeks. Each session lasts 1 hour. Clients are responsible to complete homework sheets each week which are discussed during each PGAP session.  The focus of PGAP is on life role activities, working with the patient to regain the highest level of independence with activities of daily living (ADL's) and resumption of their occupational role.

Lucas Health Solutions works with LifeTEAM Health (800-994-3220) to provide PGAP services.  For more information or for referral to Lucas Health Solutions contact LifeTEAM.