You should ask:
- What brings your here?
- How can I help you?
- What seems to be the problem?
- How long has this condition lasted?
- Does it interfere with your daily activities?
- Does it keep you up at night?
- Is the symptom located in a specific place?
- Does it radiate to a specific area of the body?
- Is the problem getting better, worse, or staying the same?
The SOCRATES acronym can be used for any type of pain history.
You should ask:
- Site: Where exactly is the pain?
- Onset: When did it start? Was it constant/intermittent, gradual/ sudden?
- Character: What is the pain like? Is it sharp, burning or tight?
- Radiation: Does it radiate/move anywhere?
- Associations: Is there anything else associated with the pain?
- Time course: Does it follow any time pattern? How long did it last?
- Exacerbating/relieving factors: Does anything make it better or worse?
- Severity: How severe is the pain on a scale of 1-10?
