Giving Silent Pain a Voice: Personalised Pain Management Through the Awwie App
Name of Organisation
Leieborg
Name of Practice
Give silent pain a voice with the Awwie pain app.
Topic
Personalised pain management, assistive technology, and digital innovation in disability care.
Location and Level
Regional.
Problem Identified and Solution Found
People with intellectual disabilities experience more pain, which is frequently missed due to non-verbal or limited expression, leading to delayed or absent treatment and reduced quality of life. Existing pain scales score aspects that are standardized, while people with intellectual disabilities are unique in their abilities and limitations. Leieborg launched the Awwie pain app in January 2026, built on fifteen years of experience with the VOPS-MB pain scale. Awwie works with individual pain profiles instead of standardized scales, supporting caregivers by focusing on observation, context and connection, strengthening rather than replacing their professional expertise.
Success Factors and Key Lessons
The app was fully self-funded by Leieborg and has already been rolled out across the organisation, with over 25 training sessions delivered in external healthcare organisations and symposia in Flanders, and further sessions planned in the Netherlands. Early results show not only more nuanced pain observation data, but also qualitatively richer communication about pain among staff. For physicians, Awwie provides an objective basis for evaluating therapy outcomes. The transition from a manually entered Excel-based scale to an accessible app has broadened ownership across the entire care team, pain management is no longer a tool close to nurses alone, but a shared organisational practice.
Beneficiaries
All children and adults with intellectual disabilities, 450 care recipients at Leieborg, caregivers and healthcare professionals.
Transferability and Replicability
A maintenance contract with an external software partner keeps the app up-to-date and operational, making the practice easily transfarable. The app was developed with a conscious effort to limit the additional workload of scoring and can be easily rolled out to other healthcare organisations, as well as to the home setting.
Contact
Dennis Boonen – Pediatric Pain Nurse / dennis.boonen@leieborg.be.
Opportunities for Collaboration
