The Superhero Scrub Project: Assembling Positive Paediatric Experiences

ABSTRACT

Aims Throughout the Covid-19 pandemic, several working practices were changed to allow for better infection control awareness and practice. St Richard's Hospital paediatric department adopted the use of medical scrubs as the standard workwear for medical staff. Children frequently find the hospital environment frightening and unfamiliar, and it is well recognised that practices that utilise play and 'fun' are effective in improving patient and parent engagement and outcomes.1 Furthermore, direct communication with the child and engagement of their interests and activities beyond their medical needs is also acknowledged as a critical element of patient centred care.2 The use of more child friendly imagery such as teddy bears or cartoons on medical clothing/devices within paediatrics is well established. The aim of this project was to trial a 'fun' but practical scrubs uniform that children and their parents would recognise and enjoy seeing, with the aim of providing a positive and less threatening experience for the child and to summarise early feedback as a proof of concept. Methods 5 sets of superhero themed scrubs were created, based on the appearances of Marvel's 'Avengers' and were worn as clinical workwear throughout the pandemic period. Verbal feedback from patients, parents and colleagues was documented and analysed for common themes. Results 'I liked Ben/Spiderman! He made me feel HAPPY!' - 8 year old female patient Feedback was positive overall. Patients generally responded positively to the superhero appearance, and frequently expressed excitement at recognising a character. However, this was sometimes short lived depending on the nature of the clinical encounter. For younger patients in particular, painful procedures remained a source of upset. Parents across the paediatric, A&E, maternity and neonatal departments frequently expressed positive sentiments about the scrubs and often made reference to their expectation that children would enjoy the appearance. No specific negative sentiment was directly fed back, however this may reflect withheld judgement and the need for a more anonymised assessment. Similar positive sentiments were fielded from medical and nursing staff across departments, though with occasional concerns expressed about the professionalism of the clothing, especially if there were a scenario of needing to break bad news. An unexpected effect was to cause amusement and anticipation of what outfit would be expected for the duty - which acted as a morale boost of sorts. Conclusion Incorporating familiar character appearances into medical workwear was well received by patients, parents and staff;and may help lessen feelings of a hospital environment seeming threatening to the child. This could benefit rapport, communication and patient outcomes. Scrub patterns are widely available and easily adaptable for different characters, though this is limited by sewing skill, cost and motivation. There are also limitations their use, particularly where the use of 'fun' imagery is emotionally incongruent. (Figure Presented).