The Effect of Performing Preoperative Preparation Program on School Age Children's Anxiety

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to examine effects of performing preoperative preparation program on children's anxiety. METHODS: This study was performed in Amirkola Pediatrics Hospital, Mazandaran. A randomized controlled trail was performed on 122 children (7–12 years of age) admitted for elective surgery during 15 months. The researcher randomly assigned eligible participants in to the experimental and control groups, after pre-test baseline measurement had been taken. Analyzing was performed through independent t-test and χ(2) test. P<0.005 was considered statistically significant. The experimental group received therapeutic play and the control group received routine preoperative information preparation. FINDINGS: The mean and standard deviation of the state anxiety scores of children in experimental and control groups before intervention were 35.52±6.99 and 34.98±6.78, after intervention 31.44±5.87 and 38.31±7.44 respectively. The state anxiety score was lower significantly in the experimental group prior to preoperative surgery than in the control group (P=0.000). CONCLUSION: Performing preoperative program with using therapeutic play intervention is effective for preparing children before surgery and decreases their anxiety.