Children can be an absolute joy to be around, but they can also be challenging to work with. From photographers trying to get kids to hold still long enough to capture a good photo, to school teachers attempting to keep the attention of a classroom full of kids, working with children is rewarding but hard at times.
Paediatric nurses have the rare role of combining working with children with the great skill of being able to support and save lives if there is a need. It is a noble profession, to say the least, but as with every other role and environment that involves working with kids, professionals need to be a bit more prepared and cleverer sometimes to be effective with children as with adults. Language barriers, cognitive ability, fears, and just general nerves or anxiety that spring from misunderstanding care for harm, children’s reactions difficult, especially when trying to administer a shot.
For any nurses that get to work with kids or teens with mental health issues, here are some tips and strategies to help nervous, anxious, and potentially fearful children through treatment.
Establish trust and rapport as quickly as possible
For the most part, children are naturally wary of strangers. This is a good thing to a degree but can complicate situations where it’s necessary to interact with a child for only a few minutes, like in most healthcare situations. A situation like this can become even more complicated when the parent is not able to be present for whatever reason.
As such, nurses who have learned that building rapport and making kids trust them as quickly as possible will have a much easier time of administering care than those who struggle with this bedside manner. Understanding that adults, who are able to grasp the situation and are able to work through the typical social formalities and niceties, are different from the more cautious and typically insecure children is a foundational place to begin interactions with children.
By taking the time to over-emphasise warm, friendly gestures, talking clearly and audibly, and even asking them questions about themselves, you can make them feel comfortable more quickly.
Engage the child’s mind
Children are naturally very curious and having curiosity engaged can help to offset nervousness and anxiety. Medical offices are filled with unfamiliar, strange, and sometimes intimidating tools or devices (like needles), and while this may be a point of anxiety for many children, educating them can shift their mindsets.
Asking them questions about what they think or feel, giving them permission to engage with all of their senses, and treating them as intelligent will take them from a place of fear to interest. Letting them use a stethoscope, tongue compressor, or other harmless tools can help them to grasp that the situation is normal and that a nurse is trustworthy.
The art of distraction
Distraction can come in many forms: turning on a TV or smart phone, playing some music, or just generally being a bit more silly is a technique that some psychiatric nurse practitioners may recommend as a wonderful way to break kids out of being focused on their anxious or nervous feelings.
Depending on the age, using stuffed animals for comfort, telling jokes, or just making them laugh are all easy and familiar ways of engaging with children, which will help them to associate an unfamiliar situation with familiar settings. Printed scrubs are a playful way to get kids to smile as they relate to things they may like. If all that fails, the good ‘ol fashioned piece of candy or sticker as a reward for great behaviour could be enough to change a fearful attitude to an excited one.
Samantha Green, a psychology graduate from the University of Hertfordshire, has a keen interest in the fields of mental health, wellness, and lifestyle.
