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Play interventions to reduce anxiety and negative emotions in hospitalized children

William H C Li1, Joyce Oi Kwan Chung2, Ka Yan Ho2

  • 1School of Nursing, The University of Hong Kong, 4/F, William M. W. Mong Block, 21 Sassoon Road, Pokfulam, Hong Kong, China. william3@hku.hk.

BMC Pediatrics
|March 13, 2016
PubMed

Insights

Hospital play interventions effectively reduce anxiety and negative emotions in children. This study provides evidence for integrating play activities to improve pediatric patient care and well-being during hospitalization.

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric Psychology
  • Child Life Services
  • Healthcare Interventions

Background:

  • Hospitalization poses significant emotional challenges for children.
  • Hospital play interventions are utilized to prepare children for medical procedures.
  • There is a need for empirical evidence on the efficacy of play interventions for hospitalized children.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To evaluate the effectiveness of hospital play interventions in reducing anxiety and negative emotions in hospitalized children.
  • To provide empirical support for the use of play activities to alleviate psychological distress in pediatric patients.

Main Methods:

  • A non-equivalent control group pre-test/post-test design was employed.
  • 304 Chinese children (ages 3-12) from two Hong Kong hospitals participated.
  • 154 children received hospital play interventions; 150 received usual care.

Main Results:

  • Children receiving play interventions showed significantly lower levels of anxiety.
  • Participants in the play intervention group exhibited fewer negative emotions compared to the control group.

Conclusions:

  • Hospital play interventions are effective in mitigating anxiety and negative emotions in hospitalized children.
  • Findings support the integration of play interventions for comprehensive pediatric care.
  • Play interventions help ease the psychological burden experienced by children during hospitalization.
Abstract

Keywords:
AnxietyChildrenEmotionsHospitalizationPaediatricsPlay interventions

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