Establishment of an acute pain management programme is considered essential to reduce the incidence and severity of postoperative pain experiences of surgical patients in surgical wards. Several quality assurance standards and practice guidelines on pain management for professionals involved in the treatment of pain have been presented. Assessment of pain, using accepted approaches, should be undertaken at regular intervals at rest, during movements and at an appropriate interval after any intervention. It is essential to document pain scores and also to include assessment of patient satisfaction with the postoperative pain management provided so that pain and its treatment is made clearly visible in the clinical setting. A program for acute pain management should also include assessment of the adherence to the accepted postoperative pain management standards over time within the organization.