This study by Dr. Patcharee Woragidpoonpol was to develop a new instrument to investigate pain level among the preterm neonates and to examine its psychometric properties.
BACKGROUND:
Preterm neonates are exposed to early and repeated procedural pain as a result of numerous diagnostic, monitoring, and therapeutic procedures. Soon after birth, preterm neonates have almost all the anatomical requirements for nociception which is the detection and transmission of pain signals from the site of the stimulus to the brain. Major issues concerning existing pain assessment scales leave room for improvement.
METHODS:
An instrument developmental research design was used to develop the Clinical Pain Scale for Preterm Neonates (CPSPN) scale in NICU. The scale development process consisted of 3 phases: phase one, the initial scale construction 22; phase two, psychometric testing; and phase three, clinical utility evaluation.
RESULTS:
The initial CPSPN scale composed of 6 indicators including 3 behavioral indicators (upper facial expression, lower facial expression, and sleepwake state), 1 physiological indicator (an increased heart rate), and 2 factors affecting pain reactivity (length of NICU stay and previous pain exposures). Gestational age was considered as a factor influencing behavioral indicators instead of another indicator.
CONCLUSION:
Nurses can use this scale to assess pain in preterm neonates and to differentiate between the preterm neonate’s pain reactivity to other clinically relevant characteristics or non-pain events. Therefore, they can detect and manage the procedural pain in the vulnerably preterm neonates appropriately.
Full article please see >>> https://www.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/PRIJNR/article/view/95738