Knowledge, attitude and practices among health care professionals regarding pain.

Objective. To assess the knowledge, attitude and practices among health care professionals regarding pain in children. Methods. This was a prospective descriptive survey conducted at a tertiary care hospital in north India. A semi structured questionnaire regarding pain in children was administered to pediatric residents and nurses in a teaching hospital. The questionnaire consisted of 24 items, of which 18 items were rated on a 5-point scale (‘strongly agree’ to ‘strongly disagree’) and 6 items were open-ended questions. Results. The response rate was 89.5%. Of 77 participants, 47 (61.1%) were nurses and 30 (38.9%) were pediatric residents. The knowledge about pain scales among the studied healthcare professionals was not widespread. Majority of respondents believed that the best judge of intensity of pain is the child. Nearly two-thirds of the respondents felt that non-pharmacological measures were better to control pain and also their practices showed that most were willing to allow the parental presence during minor invasive procedures. Conclusion. There is need to improve the knowledge of health care personnel regarding pain assessment and management in children.

Comparison of two pain scales in Indian children.

OBJECTIVE: To compare the faces pain scale and color analogue scale among children aged 6-12 years undergoing selected procedures (venipuncture, intravenous cannulation, intramuscular injection, lumbar puncture, bone marrow aspiration) and to compare the procedural pain in a child as perceived by the child, parents and health care professionals using the above mentioned scales. METHODS: This was a prospective, descriptive correlational study of children aged 6-12 years, who had undergone selected procedures. Children were assessed for their pain severity using Faces Pain Scale and Color Analogue Scale. Parents and health care professionals also independently assessed the child's pain using the same scales. RESULTS: 181 children who fulfilled the eligibility criteria were enrolled in the study. There was a significant positive correlation (R = >0.8) between both the pain scales. There was fair to moderate positive correlation (R = 0.29 to 0.58) of pain perception of child with parents and health care professionals. CONCLUSIONS: Faces Pain Scale and Color Analogue Scales seem to be appropriate instruments for measuring pain intensity among Indian children aged 6-12 years undergoing selected procedures.