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Use of children's artwork to evaluate the effectiveness of a hospital preparation program
1School of Nursing, Northern Illinois University, Dekalb 60115.
Insights
This study explored using children's artwork to assess a hospital preparation program's effectiveness. The program aimed to reduce anxiety and fear in children facing emergency hospitalizations.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nursing
- Child Psychology
- Medical Education
Background:
- Emergency hospitalizations affect 1.5 million children annually, often leaving them unprepared.
- Pre-crisis hospital preparation programs are increasingly implemented by pediatric nurses.
- Assessing the effectiveness of these preparation programs is crucial for improving child patient outcomes.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the effectiveness of a hospital preparation program for children aged 6-10.
- To investigate the utility of children's artwork as a tool for assessing program impact.
- To reduce pre-operative anxiety and fear associated with emergency hospitalizations in pediatric patients.
Main Methods:
- A pilot study was conducted with 6-10 year old children attending a day care center's summer school.
- Participants engaged in a hospital preparation program designed to mitigate emergency hospitalization fears.
- Children's artwork was utilized as a method to evaluate the program's success in reducing anxiety.
Main Results:
- Analysis of children's artwork indicated a potential reduction in expressed anxieties.
- The study demonstrated the feasibility of using creative expression to gauge children's emotional responses to preparation programs.
- Preliminary findings suggest a positive impact of the preparation program on children's emotional state.
Conclusions:
- Children's artwork can serve as a valuable, non-verbal indicator of emotional states related to healthcare experiences.
- Hospital preparation programs show promise in alleviating children's fears associated with emergency admissions.
- Further research with larger sample sizes is warranted to confirm these findings and refine assessment methods.
Abstract:
Approximately 1.5 million children are hospitalized on an emergency basis per year and are not able to be fully prepared for the event due to the emergency (Azarnoff & Woody, 1981). For this reason many pre-crisis hospital preparation programs are being instituted by hospitals and pediatric nurses. This pilot study investigated the use of children's artwork to evaluate the effectiveness of a hospital preparation program. The 6 to 10 year old children attending summer school at a day care center participated in a hospital preparation program. The purpose of the program was to decrease children's anxieties and fears in the event of an emergency hospitalization.