How can I ease my child’s anxiety about going to the hospital?

  The mindset of a pediatric patient in the face of trauma and the ensuing surgical management is different from that of an adult and requires scientific parental guidance and comfort.  I work with young patients on a daily basis, and the response and cooperation of different children to invasive procedures has a lot to do with the mindset of the parents and their teaching, which is more and more evident in the special environment of emergency medicine.  Here are a few suggestions for parents of babies who “can’t never fall”: 1) Please stay calm when dealing with emergencies, comfort the child to relieve his or her tension, and explain to older children the incident and the treatment to be done to relieve their anxiety; 2) For children of different ages, parents can use different 1) For children aged 0-2 years: parents can communicate with the doctor to understand the next procedures and explain briefly what will be done to obtain the child’s cooperation; during the operation, various methods should be used to distract the child, such as continuous conversation, playing cartoon recordings or videos that the child is familiar with; in order to cope with the subsequent operation of changing the medication and removing the stitches, parents can play with the child at home. Parents can simulate the operation of changing medication at home with the child on the doll.  2) For children 2-5 years old: Children in this age group are afraid of pain and do not understand the need for surgery. Therefore, parents should allow the doctor to communicate directly with the child and explain in “child” language to gain the child’s trust. They are generally interested in knowing what is going to be done and how long the procedure will take, which will reduce their anxiety. During the operation, parents can distract the child by telling stories and playing cartoon videos.  3) For children 6-11 years old: Children in this age group have a certain level of understanding and are learning to “bargain”. It is necessary to inform them of the purpose and procedure of the surgical operation. More notably, “rewards” can be applied to induce their cooperation. Although older children, the necessary distractions during surgery should not be ignored. Of particular concern at this age is the child’s awareness of his or her own body image and the beginning of scarring in accidentally exposed areas, especially after being teased by other children. Parents should pay attention to reassurance and proper enlightenment, keeping an eye on their child’s behavioral reactions at school.  4) For patients aged 12-18: Children in this age group are more rational and can be treated as adults. However, children can be resistant to “authority” (parents and doctors), so treating them as adults and making “agreements” with them will make it easier to get their cooperation. It is worth noting here that children are more concerned about privacy and may be more comfortable without their parents present. At this age, children are concerned about even inconspicuous scars and may experience negative emotions such as depression. Parents should cooperate with the doctor’s scar prevention treatment and if possible discuss with the child reasonable instructions to cover up the scar.