There has been a ton of US research and quality improvement in my area. You should interview my friend Katherine. Let me know if you would like to be introduced. Most pediatricians are aware of the importance of pain management but often families opt out of numbing cream given the time commitment too so… just saying You should interview my friend Katherine Oconner she has been a leader in this field at Montefiore Children’s hospital. https://www.cham.org/patients-families/find-a-doctor/katherine-m-o-connor-md-1194938605
This reminds me of the time my 1 year old needed a finger prick and, understandably, cried throughout. When we walked out of the exam room and saw our pediatrician outside the door, she said, “That was fake crying, you know.” Um, no. My child was reacting to a scary and painful situation by communicating their discomfort to us. I assume she was trying to make us all feel better about it, but her statement was both inaccurate and insensitive.
In my experience, there is a wide range of perspectives and approaches to pediatric pain among healthcare professionals. I used to be a pediatric nurse. Fortunately, the specialty in which I practiced was highly focused on easing pain and anxiety. We had several tools at the ready to help our patients (and their parents) feel as comfortable as possible. That orientation and resource-rich environment were major factors in the care we were able to provide.
This was perfectly timely for my family, Melinda. My needle-phobic kid who has a history of serious infection needed to go to urgent care yesterday and we faced a series of increasingly invasive tests similar to the ones you described. When the nurse came in for a throat swab, I asked for a proactive application of lidocaine on both of Kid's arms. Twenty minutes later when the strep test was negative, the nurse was able to draw blood easily and my kid couldn't feel a thing. I wouldn't have thought to ask for it in time without your newsletter.
We usually bring our Buzzy (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HQ1LJIS) but since I drove her straight from school to urgent care unexpectedly, I didn't have it with me. I may have mentioned this device before on these forums - I heard a TED talk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_IWhJvu0jU) from Buzzy's inventor, Dr. Amy Baxter, that changed my opinion of the importance of pain management in routine pediatric medical care.
Thank you so much for this! Looking forward to the next piece on strategies to help kids
There has been a ton of US research and quality improvement in my area. You should interview my friend Katherine. Let me know if you would like to be introduced. Most pediatricians are aware of the importance of pain management but often families opt out of numbing cream given the time commitment too so… just saying You should interview my friend Katherine Oconner she has been a leader in this field at Montefiore Children’s hospital. https://www.cham.org/patients-families/find-a-doctor/katherine-m-o-connor-md-1194938605
This reminds me of the time my 1 year old needed a finger prick and, understandably, cried throughout. When we walked out of the exam room and saw our pediatrician outside the door, she said, “That was fake crying, you know.” Um, no. My child was reacting to a scary and painful situation by communicating their discomfort to us. I assume she was trying to make us all feel better about it, but her statement was both inaccurate and insensitive.
In my experience, there is a wide range of perspectives and approaches to pediatric pain among healthcare professionals. I used to be a pediatric nurse. Fortunately, the specialty in which I practiced was highly focused on easing pain and anxiety. We had several tools at the ready to help our patients (and their parents) feel as comfortable as possible. That orientation and resource-rich environment were major factors in the care we were able to provide.
This was perfectly timely for my family, Melinda. My needle-phobic kid who has a history of serious infection needed to go to urgent care yesterday and we faced a series of increasingly invasive tests similar to the ones you described. When the nurse came in for a throat swab, I asked for a proactive application of lidocaine on both of Kid's arms. Twenty minutes later when the strep test was negative, the nurse was able to draw blood easily and my kid couldn't feel a thing. I wouldn't have thought to ask for it in time without your newsletter.
We usually bring our Buzzy (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00HQ1LJIS) but since I drove her straight from school to urgent care unexpectedly, I didn't have it with me. I may have mentioned this device before on these forums - I heard a TED talk (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4_IWhJvu0jU) from Buzzy's inventor, Dr. Amy Baxter, that changed my opinion of the importance of pain management in routine pediatric medical care.
I'm so glad you got lidocaine! The Buzzy is great!