Association Between Child Life and Opioid Administration in Pediatric Trauma Patients

Abstract

Introduction: Child life specialists (CLSs) are professionals who help pediatric patients navigate illness and treatment. This study hypothesizes there is a correlation between the time it takes for a pediatric trauma patient to receive a visit from CLS and the opioids administered to the patient. Methods: This retrospective study conducted between October 2020 and October 2022 included 803 patients <18. Patients were divided into three groups: patients who did not receive CLS, patients who received CLS within 6 h (CLS <6 h), and patients who received CLS more than 6 h after admission (CLS >6 h). Descriptive statistics were used to observe differences in the medians of age, total opioids (mg), MEQ/kg, MEQ/kg/length of stay, and injury severity scores between the groups. Linear regression and multivariate linear regression were run to determine the effect of time to CLS and the presence of CLS on total opioids. Results: The median age of patients who received CLS was 7 and those who did not was 11 (P < .001). Thirty-nine percent of females received CLS vs only 31% of males (P = .031). Time to being seen by CLS showed total opioids increased by 0.015 mg per minute. There were significant associations with younger age (P < .001), lower total opioids (P < .001), and lower MEQ/kg of opioids (P < .001) in patients with CLS <6 h compared to those with CLS >6 h. Conclusion: Increased time to being seen by CLS led to an increase in total opioid administration. Patients with CLS <6 h received fewer total opioids compared to those with CLS >6 h.