Effect of Animation Distraction on Pain Response during Venepuncture among Children

Abstract

Introduction: Children are the most valuable resource, and childhood is the world of a miracle. Every child in a lifetime may face many illnesses and hospitalisation. Pain is a common problem faced by a hospitalised child. Venepuncture is an invasive procedure followed in the hospital, which may produce pain, fear, anxiety, and discomfort in children. The animation distraction is one of the cost-effective non-pharmacological methods which may distract the child during any procedure and reduce the pain stimuli. Aim: To find the effect of animation distraction on pain response during venepuncture. Materials and Methods: An evaluative research approach with a quasi-experimental (post-test only control group) design was adopted in the study. The sample comprised of 40 children (20 each in the control and experimental group) aged 4-12 years undergoing venepuncture was selected by using a non-probability purposive sampling technique. A small 5-20 minutes of animated videos based on the children’s age and choice were displayed to the experimental group during the venepuncture procedure. Wong–Baker Faces Pain Rating Scale was used to assess the pain response after venepuncture in both the control and experimental group. Results: The data was collected, recorded systematically, and analysed with descriptive and inferential statistics. The experimental group’s mean post-test pain score (3.4±1.68) was lower than the control group (8.2±1.53) with p<0.001. Three-fourths of the control group (75%) had severe pain, whereas in the experimental group, none of the samples experienced severe pain, and 55% of the samples had moderate pain. Notably, 5% of the samples from the experimental group reported no pain during venepuncture. The calculated t-value t(38)=9.79 is greater than the table value t(38)=2.02 at 0.05 level of significance. Conclusion: The animation distraction was highly effective in reducing the pain response in children during venepuncture.