The Power of Play in Pediatric Prognoses
- UNCP Author/Contributor (non-UNCP co-authors, if there are any, appear on document)
- Kathryn Flax (Creator)
- Institution
- The University of North Carolina at Pembroke (UNCP )
- Web Site: http://www.uncp.edu/academics/library
- Advisor
- Natalya Locklear
Abstract: The hospital environment can be an intimidating and stressful place. For children, who are often not included in their medical decisions, the experience can be even more overwhelming and often leads to a traumatic experience. Hospitals and other healthcare environments attempt to improve the experience by decorating pediatric wards or having electronics available. However, these distractions do not help relieve emotional stress that the children face. The body’s response to this stress leads to anxiety, negative behavior, increase in pain, and slowed recovery time. A possible solution to relieve some of this stress is through a tactic of play therapy, or medical play. Research has shown that using play therapy can result in reduced anxiety and stress hormone levels and faster recovery and procedure times. By allowing children to do what they love, playing, healthcare environments may become slightly less intimidating and less children would grow up traumatized by the field of medicine.
The Power of Play in Pediatric Prognoses
PDF (Portable Document Format)
425 KB
Created on 5/4/2020
Views: 258
Additional Information
- Publication
- Honors Project
- Language: English
- Date: 2020
- Keywords
- Hospital, Children, Trauma, Pediatric Wards, Play Therapy, Medical Play, Healthcare, Electronics,