hcs literature review paper

Running Head: BENEFITS OF PET THERAPY FOR CHILDREN Clark 1

Benefits of Pet Therapy for Children

Imani Clark

Alvernia University

2Benefits of Pet Therapy for Children Clark

Abstract

Hospitals are not usually viewed as a pleasant place for children. When children are hospitalized,

they are at higher risk for depression due to psychological emotions such as loneliness and grief;

therefore, they may not be able to recover as efficiently as they could. A revolutionary idea, that

pets benefit children in hospital settings, has emerged and been deemed successful. In this paper,

pet therapy is shown to provide a supportive environment for hospitalized children by distracting

them from the additional stress that they have psychologically induced.

Key Words: Pet-therapy, animal-assisted therapy, hospitalized children, recovery


The idea of using animals as a factor in therapeutic treatments can be traced back as far

as the 1700’s. It was based on the notion that animals give affection and attention, diverting the

focus of the patient’s mind and resultantly relaxing their psychological stresses. In accordance

with Loretta Keller’s article on Dr. Ethan Kross’ neurological research findings, “the brain

doesn't appear to firmly distinguish between physical pain and intense emotional pain”;

emotional pain being the psychologically induced stressors that come along with physical injury

or ill controlled emotions. With this in mind, separate parts of the brain are responsible for the

emotional output in reaction to the distress caused by an outside entity such as illness or injury.

Therefore, the use of animals to relieve patients that have been hospitalized of their physiological

stress will result in a less painful experience and a faster healing process.

Activity and play, allow children to release internal stress caused by psychological

distress. Due to the lack of activity when hospitalized, children may develop anxiety, fears, and

conflicts relating to hospital experiences. Symptoms such as anxiety and fear are the effects that

develop through psychological distress. When one has nothing to focus on other than the

stressors that he or she has mentally generated, then these stressors become prominent focal

points in his or her life. According to a compilation of scientific data gathered by Irene Tracy,

“heightened anxiety and anticipation make the pain experience worse” and this may result in a

slower healing process or a failed attempt to recover. The efficacy of animal-assisted therapy

(AAT) is dependent upon the child’s connection with the animal or pet which he or she has been

introduced. This is directly related to the idea of relieving a portion of the emotional stress in

order to induce a faster healing process. Since the destruction of the brain is magnified, it

prevents it from focusing on producing stress, but the effect is dependent upon the emotional

connection that the patient has with the animal.


Therapy and pet-therapy programs are frequently used in pediatric practices and hospitals

throughout the United States. In the article, Play and Pets: The Physical and Emotional Impact

of Child-Life and Pet Therapy on Hospitalized Children, Mary Kaminski conducted research at a

large Midwestern children’s university hospital, where she examined a gathering of 70 children

along with their parents. She selected from the population of inpatients where the mean of the

children averaged at an age of nine years old (Kaminski 2002). The examination included

questions such as: How do patients rate their moods before and after a single session of pet-

therapy; How do parents and caregivers perceive a child’s mood prior to and following child-life

and pet therapy; How does [therapy] affect physiological indicators of stress (Kaminski 2002)?

The survey consisted of two control groups; a group of 40 who participated in the child-life

group therapy and another group of only 30 who participated in the pet-facilitated therapy (PFT).

During the sessions, the children's interactions were recorded on a ten to twenty minute video

and rated immediately after on a seven-point scale of pain and mood. The tapes were then

evaluated by positive affects, negative effects, anxious-fearful affects, neutral affects, and

persistence. A four-item mood rating was completed by the parents or caregivers who

accompanied the child. Results of this particular study proved positive results of the children’s

mood and increased both types of therapy significantly. In the discussion part of the article, the

children were asked what three wishes they could make and it was said, “the majority of

comments (wishes) in the sample were about owning or being with pets, not being sick, and

being able to go home” (Kaminski 2002). As one could tell, offering pet therapy as a means of

providing a child with the much needed distraction and joy in order to assist in overcoming

illness is a revolutionary idea.


Not only is pet therapy used in the United States, but it is in the initial phases of

becoming a more prominent method overseas as well. The Mater Children’s Hospital in

Brisbane, Australia became one of the first pediatric hospitals in Australia to initiate animal-

assisted therapy (Moody, 2002). A study of their up and coming dog visitation program was

taken. It consisted of a cross-section survey that was dispensed to the administrators, doctors,

nurses and therapists of the hospital. Before the actual installation of the program, there were

high hopes that animal-assisted therapy would be successful in distracting children from their

illness. This study was done based on the acceptance of animals in a hospital setting and the idea

slowly became more accepted: the acceptance grew as the animals interacted with the children

and proved themselves a reliable resource for therapeutic treatment. Animals seem to improve

the children's social interactions as well and encourage social harmony. The importance of

making health care professionals aware of the possible health benefits that companion animals

can have on patients is to be emphasized in physiological therapeutics. These companions

provide affection, non-judgmental acceptance and companionship, allowing humans to find a

sense of security (Moody, 2002).

Current research on the use of animals in therapeutics, and the successful findings

thereof, broadens the horizon for possibilities in clinical therapeutics. When a child is in an

unfamiliar setting, such as a hospital, a sense of normalcy must be incorporated into the care they

are receiving and that is the idea behind animal assisted therapy. Child-life services provides

hospitalized children with the means to decrease boredom by involving children in more natural

activities. Whereas, the use of therapeutic animals offers more of an emotional distraction

through the companionship that the children bond during contact with their therapeutic pet. This

is the type of interaction that they do not receive on a daily basis during normal hospitalization.


In consideration of the neurological findings of emotional pains; contribution to physical

distress and the proof shown through research that animals distract children from their negative

emotions, hospital administrators should confide in well-planned animal visitation programs with

the help of their staff.


References

Kaminski, M., Pellino, T., & Wish, J. (2002). Play and pets: The physical and emotional impact

of child-life and pet therapy on hospitalized children. Children's Health Care, 31(4), 321-

335. *Source not able to be pulled up on EBSCOhost*

Keller, L. (2011). New study say heartbreak is a real pain. Retrieved from

http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/opinion/20110422/loretta-keller-new-study-say-

heartbreak-is-a-real-pain

McDowell, B. M. (2005). Nontraditional Therapies for the PICU -- Part 2. Journal for

Specialists in Pediatric Nursing, 10(2), 81-85. Retrieved from

http://0-www.wiley.com.alvin.iii.com/WileyCDA/

Moody, W., King, R., & O'Rourke, S. (2002). Attitudes of pediatric medical ward staff to a dog

visitation programme. Journal of Clinical Nursing, 11(4), 537-544.

http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2702.2002.00618.x

Pet Therapy. (2014). Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta. Children's Healthcare of Atlanta.

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Inc. Retrieved from http://choa.org/pettherapy

Pet Therapy. (n.d.). Information on Healthline. Retrieved from

http://www.healthline.com/natstandardcontent/alt-pet-therapy

Service Animals. (2010). Revised ADA Requirements. Retrieved from

http://www.ada.gov/service_animals_2010.htm

Tracey, I. (2010). Getting the pain you expect: mechanisms of placebo, nocebo and reappraisal

effects in humans. Nature Medicine, 16(11), 1277-1283. http://dx.doi:10.1038/nm.2229

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