Abstract

This study aimed to identify the effect of distraction technique involving squeezing a squishy object on pain in children during intravenous catheter insertion. In this work, the control group posttest-only quasi-experimental design was used. This study involved 50 participants aged 3–15 years and were assigned into either intervention or control group. The intervention group was provided with a squishy object to squeeze as a form of distraction during intravenous catheter insertion, whereas the control group received the standard intervention. Pain was measured by using the Wong Baker Faces Scale for 3–8 years old and the Visual Analog Scale or Numeric Rating Scale for children older than 8 years. Mann–Whitney analysis reveals significant difference in pain level between the intervention and control groups (p<0,001; α=0.05). The distraction technique involving squeezing a squishy object effectively reduced pain in children during intravenous catheter insertion and is recommended for pain management in nursing care in pediatric ward.

Keywords: Distraction, intravenous insertion, pain