Healthcare Professionals
- Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule, 2009
- Catch-up Immunization Scheduler for Children
- Refusal to Vaccinate
- Vaccine Information Statements (VIS)
- Helping Kids Cope with Shots
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- Site Selection and Technique
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Helping Kids Cope with Shots
Getting shots can sometimes be a very distressing and anxiety-filled experience for children, parents and the health care provider. However, there are things that parents and health care professionals can do to help children cope with the unfamiliar experience of getting shots.The combination of the parent's attitude and distraction techniques used can influence the level of distress a child will feel during the health care appointment. In addition, proper shot site selection and technique should be used to minimize pain and discomfort. This was recently researched in the study "Pain Reduction During Pediatric Immunizations: Evidence-Based Review and Recommendations" that appears in the journal, Pediatrics.
Some techniques to reduce pain and distress include:
- storytelling
- reading to the child
- blowing bubbles
- deep breathing
- sucrose on pacifier for children < 6 months
- applying pressure to the site
- calm, matter-of-fact attitude from parent
- use of local anesthetics for select children
To read more about this study covered on FOX News.com in an article called "Easing Your Child's Immunization Anxiety", click here.
For a direct link to the study in Pediatrics, click here.
Reference: Schechter, N. L., Zempsky, W. T., Cohen, L. L., McGrath, P. J., McMurtry, C. M., Bright, N. S., Pain reduction during pediatric immunizations: evidence-based review and recommendations. Pediatrics 2007 May; 119(5):e1184-e1198.