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Study to Examine the Effects of Child Life Interventions on Children's Anxiety Levels at Induction of Anesthesia

NCT02395094 · Status: COMPLETED · Phase: NA · Type: INTERVENTIONAL · Enrollment: 72

Last updated 2017-10-27

No results posted yet for this study

Summary

Children can experience high levels of anxiety immediately prior to surgery. In fact, this can be the most stressful part of the whole surgical experience for children. Anxiety before surgery is associated with problems after surgery; such as short-term increased need for pain medication and long-term sleep disturbances or behaviour change. Child Life, a program run in some North American children's hospitals has developed ways to reduce children's anxiety prior to surgery. These techniques can include role-play or story books amongst others.

In this study, the investigators aim to look at the benefits of the Child Life techniques on anxiety levels of children and their caregivers just prior to receiving anesthesia in the operating room. The study will include children between the ages of 3 and 10 years old, needing day case surgery lasting less than 2 hours, and having never had surgery before. They will be randomly allocated to either not receive any intervention by Child Life or to receive Child Life intervention in the period prior to their surgery, when they are waiting in the Surgical Day Care Unit. Anxiety levels of the children and their caregivers will be measured as they arrive in the hospital and immediately prior to anesthesia, to see if there is a lower level of anxiety in the group receiving the Child Life intervention.

Conditions

  • Preoperative, Anxiety

Interventions

BEHAVIORAL

Child Life

Child Life preparation in surgical daycare can include: * role-play using dolls and medical equipment (either toy doctor kits or true medical materials) * the use of books/storyboards that show pictures of operating room and daycare routines * teaching \& rehearsing coping and relaxation skills such as deep breathing and guided imagery * age-appropriate explanation of what to expect throughout the day in SDCU

Sponsors & Collaborators

  • University of British Columbia

    lead OTHER

Principal Investigators

  • Zoe Brown · University of British Columbia

Study Design

Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
SINGLE
Model
PARALLEL

Eligibility

Min Age
3 Years
Max Age
10 Years
Sex
ALL
Healthy Volunteers
No

Timeline & Regulatory

Start
2015-04-30
Primary Completion
2016-06-30
Completion
2016-06-30

Countries

  • Canada

Study Locations

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Read the full study record

This page highlights key information. For complete eligibility criteria, study locations, investigator contacts, and the full protocol, visit the original record on ClinicalTrials.gov.

View NCT02395094 on ClinicalTrials.gov