The Effect of Preparation for Hospitalization on School-age Children’s Fear during Admission in Iranian Hospitals

• Main Authors: Efat Sadeghian, Marziyeh Seif, Mohammad Mehdi Daraei, Hassan Aahmadinia, Arash Khalili
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amber Publication 2017-10-01
• Series: Journal of Research in Medical and Dental Science
• Subjects: Hospitalization; Fear; Patient Admission; School Age Population; Child
• Online Access: https://www.jrmds.in/articles/the-effect-of-preparation-for-hospitalization-on-schoolage-childrens-fear-during-admission-in-iranian-hospitals.pdf
• ISSN: 2347-2545; 2347-2367

Hospitalization has unpredictable and often negative consequences for children, including fear. The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of preparation for hospitalization on school-age children’s fear during admission in Iranian hospitals in 2017. In this quasi-experimental pretest-posttest control group study, 54 school-age children (6 to 12 years old) referred to the children departments (1 and 2) of Besat Hospital of Hamadan were randomly assigned to two groups. A demographic questionnaire and Broome Children Medical Fear Scale were used to collect data. In the treatment group, after completing the questionnaires, the preparation program was provided: this included familiarizing the child with the department and personnel, the tools, and presentation of a cartoon booklet for 30 minutes. For the control group, the usual tasks of the department were applied, after which the questionnaires were re-filled by both groups. Data was analyzed by SPSS software version 16 and Fisher and Chi-square tests were used. There was no significant difference between the scores of fear at the pre-intervention stage in the two groups (P = 0.227), while these means were significantly different after the intervention in the two groups (P = 0.001). This establishes the positive effect of intervention in reducing hospital fear for school-age children. Based on the findings of the present study, the preparation program is an effective way to reduce the fear of school-age children. Therefore, it is recommended that this method should also be investigated for other age groups.