Effects of a Clown-Nurse Educational Intervention on the Reduction of Postoperative Anxiety and Pain Among Preschool Children and Their Accompanying Parents in South Korea

This study examined the effects of a clown-nurse educational intervention on children undergoing day surgery for strabismus. This was a quasi-experimental study, using a nonequivalent control group, non-synchronized design. Fifty preschool children and their parents were invited to participate. The children in the intervention group (n = 23) received clown therapy and subsequently reported significantly lower states of physiological anxiety, which was evidenced by systolic blood pressure, standardized behavioral anxiety tests, and post-surgery pain, than the control group (n = 27). In addition, the parents in the experimental group showed a low state of physiological anxiety, evidenced by systolic blood pressure, pulse rates, standardized behavioral anxiety tests, and state-trait anxiety. The use of preoperative clown intervention may alleviate postoperative problems, not only for children, but also for their parents.