How Does the Utilization of Non-pharmacologic Pain Management Techniques Affect Pain Outcomes and Long-term Memories in Young Children During Painful Procedures?

Background: A child’s pain is different from pain experienced as adults. Different emotional and psychological factors can affect the child’s pain comprehension and stimulate their response to pain. Procedural pain can have long-term negative effects on children. It may cause increased pain sensitivity, fear, and avoidance of healthcare as adults. Parents may also experience anxiety during their child’s procedure, which may increase their child’s perceived pain. Problem: This DNP project aimed to implement and evaluate the usage of the Buzzy device during painful procedures of children ages three through six years at this pediatric hospital. Distraction can be used to decrease pain perceptions in children and parents, which could positively affect long-term memories. Interventions: The nurses utilized Buzzy with children aged three to six years of age needing venipuncture. Staff provided a pain survey to each patient who received Buzzy before and during a painful procedure. Parents were contacted at 2 weeks and 1-month post-procedure to assess pain perceptions. Results: Ninety-six patients participated in the study. An 84.6% response rate was acquired from the surveys. Ninety-seven percent of parents and patients surveyed reported decreased pain with venipuncture using Buzzy. Pain perceptions decreased with the use of Buzzy both short-term and long-term. Conclusion: The positive response from patients and parents demonstrates Buzzy may be used to decrease pain perceptions in children and families. The success rate shown in this study will aid in distraction techniques used as pain management to be added to evidence-based practice in the future.

Creator

• Graybill, Sheryl

Language

• English

Stichwort

• Buzzy
• pediatric pain
• distraction techniques
• pain perceptions
• vibration

Date created

• 2021

Resource type

• Research Paper

Rights statement

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/