Reducing Anxiety in Children Undergoing Day Surgery

This study was conducted to determine the efficacy of finger puppets, distraction cards and kaleidoscope for reducing anxiety in children undergoing day surgery. The study was conducted using the "pre-post test unpaired group model", one of the quasi-experimental methods.

The study was carried out from April 2023 to January 2024, involving children aged 6-12 years admitted to the pediatric clinic of a teaching and research hospital for day surgery (tonsillectomy, circumcisio, adenotonsillectomy etc.). Notably, the nursing care provided at the hospital does not incorporate distraction techniques aimed at alleviating anxiety in children.

Sample The sample required for the study was calculated using the G*Power (3.1.9.4) computer program. Based on the Type I error of 5%, Type II error of 99%, SD = 6.20, and Type I error of 5% in the study by Dehghan et al. (2017), the desired effect size for this study was 0.55 and the total required sample size was 64 children (approximately 21 children for each group) (Dehghan et al., 2017). A total of 85 children, comprising 20 children in the control group, 22 in the finger puppet intervention group, 21 in the distraction cards intervention group, and 22 in the kaleidoscope intervention group, was recruited from the pediatric clinic between April 2023 and January 2024, meeting the study's inclusion criteria. Notably, no randomization method was employed in the selection process.

Inclusion criteria

• children aged 6-12 years
• scheduled for day surgery
• devoid of prior surgical experiences
• willingly consented to participation.

Exclusion criteria

• children undergoing major surgeries (e.g., cardiac procedures)
• emergency surgical interventions
• individuals with mental retardation
• as well as those with visual or auditory impairments.