Care performed by nurses who support the “ganbatta” behaviors of young children undergoing blood sampling

Abstract

 Objective The objective of this study was to identify the care performed by nurses who support the “ganbatta” behaviors of young children aged 3 to 7 years who were undergoing blood sampling. Method A qualitative inductive analysis was conducted after observing, through observation logs, the “ganbatta” behaviors of young children aged 3 to 7 years during blood sampling as well as the nurses’ behaviors prior to observing the children’s “ganbatta” behaviors. Result The subjects were 20 young children (median age: 5 years and 4 months) who were scheduled to undergo blood sampling. Blood sampling was conducted by eight nurses with a median pediatric nursing experience of 16 years. The following categories were extracted as types of care performed by nurses that supported “ganbatta” behaviors: “creating an atmosphere that encourages young children to do their best”, “providing information that takes into consideration the feelings of young children”, “suggestions that encourage the independence of young children”, “asking questions that promote and confirm the understanding of young children”, “praising the efforts of young children”, and “distraction”. Discussion Based on “creating an atmosphere that encourages young children to do their best”, nurses efforts included making “suggestions that encourage the independence of young children”. Furthermore, “praising the efforts of young children” was suggested as a possible continuous form of support that fosters the children’s independence.