Evaluation of a Coping Kit for Children.pdf

PEDIATRIC NURSING/July-August 2012/Vol. 38/No. 4 215 The Centers for Disease Controland Prevention (CDC) (2004)defines developmental dis-abilities as a diverse group of severe chronic conditions that are due to mental and/or physical impair- ments that affect language, mobility, learning, self-help, and independent living. These disabilities may include autism spectrum disorder (ASD), cere- bral palsy, Down syndrome, and other congenital abnormalities, vision and hearing impairments, and intellectual disabilities. They are estimated to affect 17% of children less than 18 years of age in the United States (CDC, 2006). Although research has shown that individuals with developmental dis- abilities have more hospital admis- sions than non-developmentally delayed children (Liptak, Stuart, Auinger, 2006; Peterson, Ross, Tucker, 2002; Scarpinato et al., 2010; Souders, Freeman, DePaul, Levy, 2002), there is little research describ- ing what forms of distraction work well for them when they are in health care settings. Convincing a child to cooperate during a health care visit can be difficult and is often a trial and for improving communication, pro- viding distraction, and decreasing a child’s anxiety and challenging behaviors to justify their use the kit in the future. Significance and Rationale Behavioral Challenges In the Hospital Research has demonstrated that children with ASD suffer great anxiety with changes in routine environ- ment. Therefore, ASD is recognized as the most severe developmental dis- ability in terms of behavioral chal- lenges (Gurney, McPheeters, Davis, 2006; Newsom Hovanitz, 2006). Challenging behaviors accompany the child’s impaired social interaction and communication (American Psy - chiatric Association [APA], 1994). Children with ASD struggle with rou- tine changes and new environments (Souders et al., 2002). Although chil- dren with ASD have similar basic medical needs as children without any developmental disabilities, meet- ing their