Making the System Work

Abstract

Three 4-to 7-year-old pediatric oncology patients were taught to engage in distraction prior to painful bone marrow asporations and limber puncture and to use party blowers as a breathing technique during the painful procedures. Parents were taught to coach their children to use these coping behavior. Using a multiple baseline across subjects design, results indicated that all of the parents increased their rate of coaching. Each child responded with increased coping and decreased observable distress on the next two sessions. The other two children maintained their high rates of coping and low rates of observable distress during the remaining treatment and during the maintenance sessions. Parents' coaching of theri children to use coping behaviors also remained high during maintenance sessions.