Parent's Management of their Child's Pain in the Home Following Day Surgery

Abstract

When a child returns home following day case surgery, the parent becomes responsible for the assessment and treatment of their child's pain. Pain is documented as being the most common complication following day case surgery. The study investigated parental management of their child's pain at home following day surgery. A purposive sample of 100 parents of children undergoing day case surgery at a regional paediatric hospital was obtained. Parents were contacted by telephone in their own home 24 hours after day surgery and, through a structured interview schedule, were asked a series of questions relating to their child's pain management and discharge information. The results indicated that parents managed their child's pain in the home if provided with information and suitable analgesia on discharge. Instigation of telephone follow-up for parents was upheld as a measure to provide support to parents, as 79 percent of parents found the telephone call useful.