The Significance of Pain in Children's Experiences of Hemophilia

Abstract

The purpose of this research was to document how children with hemophilia describe their experiences with pain in relation to their understanding of their unique illness and treatment experiences. Subjects were 20 children with hemophilia who were between the age of 6 years and 13 years and had no evidence of cognitive problems. Following the principles of grounded theory, data about children's experiences of hemophilia were obtained through a semi-structured interview using five pictorial stimuli representing illness and treatment domains. Data analysis was conducted using the constant comparative method. Findings indicated that pain experiences had a major role in children's perceptions of their illness and treatment experiences and in the meaning attached to these experiences.