Child Life Pain Management Flashcards
6 cards from real Child Life Exam practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 6 Child Life Pain Management flashcards as text
Which pain assessment tool is MOST appropriate for a non-verbal 2-year-old child in the post-operative period?
Answer: FLACC (Face, Legs, Activity, Cry, Consolability) scale
The FLACC scale is a behavioral observation tool designed for pre-verbal or non-verbal children, assessing pain through observable behaviors rather than self-report.
A child life specialist can BEST support pharmacological pain management by:
Answer: Preparing the child for how the medication will be given and helping manage side effects through coping strategies
Child life specialists support pharmacological pain management through preparation, education, and coping support—not by administering or prescribing medications.
Research supports that children's pain perception is MOST influenced by:
Answer: A combination of physical, psychological, and environmental factors
Pain is a biopsychosocial experience influenced by physical sensation, psychological state (anxiety, fear, past experiences), and environmental factors (setting, parental presence, preparation).
Which non-pharmacological pain management technique involves applying a cold vibrating device to the skin near a needle insertion site?
Answer: Buzzy device
The Buzzy device combines cold temperature and vibration near the procedure site to disrupt pain signal transmission through the gate control mechanism.
When a parent says 'Don't be a baby, it won't hurt,' before their child's injection, the child life specialist should:
Answer: Redirect by acknowledging the child's feelings and providing honest, age-appropriate information
The specialist should model supportive communication by validating the child's feelings and providing honest information, subtly coaching the parent toward more helpful language.
The gate control theory of pain is BEST applied in child life practice through:
Answer: Using physical comfort measures like vibration, pressure, and temperature alongside psychological techniques
Gate control theory explains how competing sensory inputs (vibration, pressure, cold) and psychological factors (attention, emotion) can modulate pain perception at the spinal cord level.