Effect of Storytelling Versus Cartoon on Pain and Fear Relief among Children Undergoing Venipuncture

Abstract

Background: Pain and fear may be experienced by children who are subjected to uncomfortable procedures. Pain management is an important topic to explore, as is how distraction techniques can be utilized to divert children's attention away from uncomfortable stimuli during painful procedures. This study was aimed to evaluate the effect of storytelling versus cartoon on pain and fear relief among children undergoing venipuncture. Design: The current study used a quasi-experimental research design. Setting: the current study was conducted in Surgical Pediatric Department at Beni Suef University Hospital. Subjects: 120 preschool-age children selected through the purposive sampling method were equally and randomly assigned into three groups, (40 children in the storytelling group, 40 children in cartoon group, and 40 children in the control group who received routine hospital care). Tools: Four tools were used as the following: I-A structured interviewing questionnaire, II-NumericRating Scale (NRS), III-Wong-Baker FACES Pain Rating Scale, and IV Children's Fear Scale were used for collecting data. Results: In the cartoon group, children having the lowest mean pain (2.3+1.2). About one-third of children had moderate pain, more than half of the children remained relaxed, with statistical significance differences of (0.001*). More than half of children in the cartoon group reporting no pain on WBFS. The children in the cartoon group (1.2+0.5) had lower mean ratings for fear. Conclusion: Cartoon was an effective method for reducing and relieving pain and fear among children during venipuncture more than the storytelling method. Control group who received the routine work of the hospital only, their pain and fair still high. Recommendations: Application of the storytelling and cartoon distraction techniques besides routine hospital programs during intravenous injection is recommended in the care of children to reduce pain and fear related to intravenous injection