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Helping parents support their child in pain
1School of Nursing, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
Pediatric Nursing
|May 25, 2002
Summary
Parents are crucial for comforting children in pain. Healthcare practices often exclude parents, despite their ability to provide essential support and comfort during painful procedures for children.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric healthcare
- Pain management
- Child psychology
Background:
- Children in healthcare settings experience pain and require parental support for effective coping.
- Parental presence is highly valued by children for comfort during painful experiences.
- Healthcare professionals sometimes exclude parents, believing it aids child cooperation during procedures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine parental and healthcare professional attitudes and practices concerning children in pain.
- To identify strategies for nurses to support parents assisting children through painful experiences.
Main Methods:
- Review of research findings on parental and healthcare professional attitudes and practices.
- Exploration of parental roles in managing pediatric pain.
- Development of strategies for nursing interventions.
Main Results:
- Parents are frequently excluded from supporting children during painful healthcare experiences.
- Parents possess effective strategies for comforting and distracting children during procedures.
- Healthcare professionals' practices may not align with the recognized need for parental support.
Conclusions:
- Reintegrating parents into pediatric pain management enhances child coping and comfort.
- Nurses can play a key role in empowering parents to support their children during painful procedures.
- Further research and policy changes are needed to support parental presence during pediatric pain.