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Kids Info - Anaesthesia & Pain Management
Comfort Kids Website
The Comfort Kids program was created in 2005 to address the procedural pain management needs of a specialist paediatric hospital.The program provides guidance, education,resources and expertise in the management of children's discomfort, anxiety, and distress before, during and after procedures. The program is part of the Anaesthesia and Pain Management Service.
The website is designed as a resource and guide to enable families, children and health care professionals to assess,prepare and support the child and family with procedures and tests.
There is an interactive computer game and activity book for children about going to the hopspital.
There are many reasons that children need operations
One day your doctor may decide that you need an operation.
When you have an operation you will need to have an anaesthetic.
An anaesthetic is a medicine which makes sure that you won’t
feel, see or hear anything while you are having your operation.
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| The doctor who gives you the anaesthetic is called an Anaesthetist. (Anesthesiologist in American T.V. shows.) |
In the days before surgery
Talk to your friends and family, one of them may have had an operation before.
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You may want to bring some things from home. You could bring your pyjamas, a toy, some
drawing books or something else to play with. What is an anaesthetic?
What is an anaesthetic?
With an anaesthetic you go to sleep but it’s different to normal sleep.
At home you sleep alone in your own bed.
Here there are lots of people around you.
At home your mummy and daddy kiss you good night.
Here they will kiss you as you go to sleep.
They won’t be with you during the operation but they will wait for you in the waiting room until your operation is over
At home the lights go off when it’s sleep time.
Here there is a very strong light, the operating light, which we switch on whilst you are asleep.
At home you go to sleep because it’s night and you’re sleepy.
Here we give you medicine to make you sleepy even when you are not tired.
On the day of your operation
At the hospital you will go to either the day surgery unit or the hospital wards. In either area there is a room with lots of beds with a special bed just for you.
Your mummy and daddy can stay with you while you wait. You may like to play with a toy from home.
The nurses will talk to you and put some magic cream (the anaesthetic cream) on the back of your hand.
The anaesthetist will come to explain what will happen next.
The anaesthetist might ask the nurses to give you some medicine to help you relax while you wait. This is called premedication.
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| On the day of surgery you will meet the anaesthetist who will listen to your chest and heart. You can stay in your pyjamas or wear a hospital gown. |
When it's your turn for your operation you sit on a special bed and go to the operating theatre. Most times your mummy or daddy can come with you until you go to sleep.
The anaesthetic room
In the Anaesthetic room you will meet the people and machines who will look after you while you are asleep.
The E.C.G
We put three dots on your chest and arms, and the machine makes a little beep-beep-beep.
The oximeter
We put a little clip or ring on your finger which sometimes pinches a little. It shines a little red light on your finger.
The blood pressure cuff
This is a cuff that blows up slowly every few minutes. It feels like a squeeze.
We'll also keep an eye on you
We are the machines that watch you while you sleep, we record numbers on a TV monitor.
After you are asleep we may attach a little tube to the needle in your hand with sticky tape. Through this we can give you medicine to keep you asleep and also some salty water and sugar to nourish your body.
To make sure you don't have pain when you wake, the anaesthetist will use local anaesthetic near the area that the surgeon will operate.
When you wake up you will have a numb patch. Also your arm, finger or legs may feel heavy or wobbly. This feeling wears off gradually.
For long operations we continue the local anaesthetic through a special tube taped to your back, this is called the epidural. This will keep you comfortable during the days after your operation.
The anaesthetic
There are two ways to give an anaesthetic. Your anaesthetist will decide which will work best for you.
1. You may have a small needle in the back of your hand or in your arm. You might feel it going in, but it won't hurt because of the cream. You might get a funny taste in your mouth just before you go to sleep.
| 2. The other way is to breathe through the mask. The gas is smelly but if you take five or six big breaths you will fall asleep quickly and peacefully. |  |
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During the operation
The stomach stops. That's why you can't eat before an anaesthetic. The body gets cold easily. To protect you from getting cold we use many different methods of heating.
For special operations we use a machine to help you breathe. The anaesthetic will keep you asleep during the operation. You will not wake before the operation is finished.
The recovery room
When everything is finished we take you to the recovery room. Your parents can join you in recovery whilst you wake or they will join you when you return to the ward. Here you will wake up slowly.
If you are sore the doctors or nurses can give you something to realieve the pain. It's not necessary to have a needle.
Remember we often use local anaesthetic to numb the nerves. It will only last a few hours.
For big operations you often need to stay in hospital afterwards. Your parents can go with you to the wards and sometimes they can stay with you overnight.
However, for many operations you can go home a few hours afterwards and sleep in your own bed.