Recent research has revealed that children who are highly anxious prior to surgery experienced more problems post surgery. These problems included reporting of more pain and requested more pain medication during hospitalization and home follow up. Consumption of pain medication may not be the optimal pain management program. In contrast, numerous human-animal interaction studies have shown that animals tend to have a calming effect on people, reduce stress, and lesson anxiety. Therefore, the primary objective of this study is to examine the effect of pre surgery dog visits as compared to a costumed character or parents-only on the consumption of pain medication after surgery.
The objective of this study is to examine the effects of pre surgery dog visits as compared to a costumed character or parents-only on the consumption of pain medication after surgery. It is hypothesized that pre surgery dog visits will reduce post surgical stress and anxiety.