How are the levels of pain measured ?
LEVELS OF PAIN are measured - via a binary pain scale
Also the technology is not derived simply from the Abbey Pain Scale - see diagram.
You say it is inefficient because PAIN IS SUBJECTIVE ?
Painchek inventors were well aware of this which is why the subjective nature of pain
is accounted for .
Also remember, as far as I understand it, the more data collected the more ‘deep learning’ takes place
Here is an excerpt which may be useful to some.
For me understanding that it works - as in no churn rate etc etc is more important than how it works .
If you are serious in your enquiries I suggest you write to some of the highly accredited professors and doctors who designed the app as I am just a layperson
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2018.00117/full
View attachment 1896232
“Conceptual Foundation of PainChek™ System (Figure 1)
In designing the PainChek™ system, the following conceptualizations were considered:
1. The subjective nature of pain i.e. individualized experience of pain as per its definition by the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP) (Merskey and Bogduk, 1994).
2. The multi-dimensionality, complexity, and dynamicity of pain as a construct (Merskey and Bogduk, 1994).
3. The American Geriatric Society (AGS) Indicators of Persistent Pain were selected as a basic framework to enrich comprehensiveness and to meet the objectives of the tool (AGS Panel on Persistent Pain in Older Persons, 2002).
4. The temporality of pain and related behaviors, so that trends and patterns of pain scores provide a comprehensive clinical picture of the patient under assessment.
5. Objective description of key pain behaviors, such as Facial Action Coding System (FACS)—pain relevant expressions (Ekman et al., 1978).
6. Items sensitive to the presence and intensity of pain were selected on the basis of current evidence (clinical guidelines, previous studies, and other pain assessment tools in dementia).
7. Simple scoring mechanism. For clinicians and carers, it is difficult and highly subjective to make a distinction between whether a patient has mild, moderate or severe pain-related behaviors (Flaherty, 1996).
We adopted binary scoring in the PainChek™ pain scale, because such mathematical basis is more predictive of event outcomes and less prone to error than ordinal rating (Ridley, 2002).
These criteria are also linked to improved accuracy (Ridley, 2002).
8. Innovative technologies were considered in developing the system. Cognification and affective computing were conceptualized as a model in designing the App to provide a synergistic effect on the use of the tool (Kelly, 2016). Cognification integrates artificial (emotional) intelligence (AI) or affective computing e.g., automated facial recognition and analysis (AFRA), smart computing, and “Internet of Things” (IoT).
Automation was integrated because the FACS requires lengthy training, and a certified skilled observer (coder), which render its use in clinical settings impractical (Craig et al., 2011).
Smart device technology was selected because they are mobile, miniaturized, cost-efficient, easy to use, have high processing power, and they allow interoperability.
IoT and cloud computing allow data management in real time, and transfer of data among different networks.
Further, the App does not need to be connected to the internet while in use....”
