Clown Doctors
Reducing the stress suffered by children is critical to providing the best possible situation for the child and their parents. There are many ways to reduce the level of stress for the family that faces an anesthesiologist in the preop area. One way that turns down the flame is to be the clown in the room. many doctors, over the years, have found that a red nose, a puppet, a silly joke will make everyone feel comfortable in the right circumstances. 'A couple of examples:
1. Talk to the child about going for lunch after the procedure - most will mention Macdonalds and chicken fingers, no matter what the age or developmental level.
2. Ask the preadolescent if the other people in the room are homeless people that the child picked up on the way to the hospital
3. Get someone's nose
4. if the child is very young, carry them around to other preop rooms looking for puppies or kitties.
Anything to keep the child from focusing on the task ahead. As Zeev Kain eloquently says, telling the child that it will be alright is not helpful...everybody knows that it isn't going to be alright. Being the clown in the room takes the attention off of the bad things and puts it on the comedy in life.
1. Talk to the child about going for lunch after the procedure - most will mention Macdonalds and chicken fingers, no matter what the age or developmental level.
2. Ask the preadolescent if the other people in the room are homeless people that the child picked up on the way to the hospital
3. Get someone's nose
4. if the child is very young, carry them around to other preop rooms looking for puppies or kitties.
Anything to keep the child from focusing on the task ahead. As Zeev Kain eloquently says, telling the child that it will be alright is not helpful...everybody knows that it isn't going to be alright. Being the clown in the room takes the attention off of the bad things and puts it on the comedy in life.
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