Educating Nurses on the Benefits of Acupuncture for Pediatric Pain Control

Abstract

Record ID: 107

Type: Poster Presentation (in-person)

Advisor: Caroline Morrison

Abstract: Pain management is a major issue in the United States and is often not treated appropriately. It is especially prevalent in the pediatric population, and it can be very difficult to treat due to the difficulty of communicating pain and the reality that everyone experiences pain differently. The overall goal of our educational project is to review the literature associated with acupuncture used for pediatric pain management and educate pediatric nurses about acupuncture pain control and symptom management. The literature found will help answer the following question; how does acupuncture differ from traditional pharmacological management in pain control? Using the literature, an interactive presentation was developed which was presented to nurses at Cincinnati Children's Hospital. Our main point of emphasis during the presentation was to consider the inclusion of acupuncture into pain management treatment. To gauge the learning and overall impression of the nurses that attended the presentation, a pre-test and post-test will be administered. This allowed us to evaluate our presentation and understand how well acupuncture would be accepted into current practice. The results of the presentation are pending, and it is anticipated that there will be an improvement in nurses' knowledge of acupuncture as a method of pain management. By educating nurses on the value of acupuncture for pain relief, pediatric pain management will be greatly improved.