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A magical dream: a pilot project in animal-assisted therapy in pediatric oncology
France Bouchard1, Marie Landry, Marthe Belles-Isles
1CHUQ (Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Québec).
Insights
Animal-assisted therapy can help hospitalized children with cancer adapt to their new environment. This pilot project showed successful integration of therapeutic dogs, improving patient and staff satisfaction.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Oncology
- Animal-Assisted Interventions
- Child Psychology
Background:
- Hospitalization is a significant stressor for children with cancer, impacting their emotional and physical well-being.
- Children face challenges adapting to unfamiliar hospital environments, medical treatments, and separation from their families.
- There is a need for innovative approaches to mitigate the psychological distress associated with pediatric cancer treatment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the feasibility and impact of an animal-assisted therapy program for hospitalized children with cancer.
- To explore the potential of using the human-animal bond to facilitate adaptation to illness and the hospital setting.
- To assess patient and staff satisfaction with the novel care approach.
Main Methods:
- A one-year pilot project was conducted on a pediatric oncology unit.
- The project involved trained "therapeutic" dogs and dedicated volunteers.
- A rigorous design and implementation process was followed, addressing potential constraints of animal presence in a tertiary care setting.
Main Results:
- The animal-assisted therapy program was successfully implemented despite initial concerns and constraints.
- The project demonstrated strong engagement from volunteers and healthcare professionals.
- Patients and nursing staff reported high levels of satisfaction with the program.
Conclusions:
- Animal-assisted therapy is a viable and beneficial complementary care program for pediatric oncology patients.
- The pilot project's success provides a foundation for the permanent integration of this innovative therapeutic approach.
- This intervention shows promise in improving the adaptation and overall experience of children undergoing cancer treatment.
Abstract:
For children with cancer, being hospitalized represents a great source of stress. Hospitalized children are not only deprived of their familiar and comforting world, but they must also face various and often painful treatments. They must quickly adapt to new people and to an environment that is very different from that of their homes. They have greater safety needs. Thus, it is important to offer these children concrete ways to better adapt to the stresses of hospitalization. Animal-assisted therapy, considered within this project as a novel approach to care, constitutes an interesting solution. It involves using the privileged relation between children and animals to foster the process of adaptation to illness and the hospital environment. The experience described in this article is a one-year pilot project completed on a pediatric oncology unit. A priori, an already very heavy workload, the vulnerability of the patients, and many constraints added to the concerns related to the presence of animals on a tertiary care unit. A postiori, the rigorous design and implementation process of the pilot project, the strong involvement and engagement of volunteers and professionals, the quality of the participating "therapeutic" dogs, the originality of the entire process, and the satisfaction of the patients and nursing staff contributed to its success and to establishing the basis for a permanent implementation of this special care program for children hospitalized with cancer.