Impact of Facility Dog Intervention on Pediatric Patients

Children's Hospital Colorado

Status: Not yet enrolling

Conditions: Inpatients; Pediatric

Treatments: Behavioral: Mindfulness Activity led by CCLS; Behavioral: Coloring page activity led by CLAC; Behavioral: Mindfulness Activity led by CCLS and Facility Dog

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT07221006

25-1381

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if medical dog intervention facilitated by a Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) impacts pediatric patient coping, fear, and anxiety during inpatient admissions. The main questions it aims to answer are:

What impact does facility dog support via a CCLS have on patient fear, coping, and anxiety? What effect does facility dog support via a CCLS have on patient heart rate? Researchers will compare medical dog intervention facilitated by a CCLS, CCLS intervention, and a coloring activity to see if medical dog interventions positively impact coping, fear, and anxiety.

Participants will:

Receive a visit from a medical dog and their CCLS handler, a CCLS, or a Child Life Activity coordinator.

Engage in a mindfulness or coloring activity. Answer surveys regarding anxiety, coping, and fear. Have their heart rate measured before, during, and after their assigned intervention.

Enrollment: 126 estimated patients

Sex: All

Ages: 8 to 17 years old

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Children admitted to an inpatient unit at Children's Hospital Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
• Who are eight to 17 years old.

Exclusion criteria

• Isolation precautions
• Primary reason for admission is due to suicidality, self-injurious behavior, or injurious behavior
• Patients with history of or currently presenting with aggression or unsafe behavior
• Severe comorbidities secondary to traumatic brain injury, neurological disorder or neurodevelopmental issues that may confound study outcomes and administration of the study protocol (e.g., intellectual disability)
• Not medically stable
• Have a fear of dogs
• Have an allergy to dogs
• Have had a visit from a medical dog and medical dog handler during their current admission
• Patient has an urgent or time-sensitive need requiring medical dog support - Patient is non-verbal.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Supportive Care

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Parallel Assignment

Masking: None (Open label)

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126 participants in 3 patient groups

Child life specialist intervention + facility dog led mindfulness

Experimental group

Description:

Participants will receive a 20-minute mindfulness coping intervention from a CCLS handler and their facility dog. The CCLS will introduce themselves and their facility dog and explain the activity, then implement a guided mindfulness activity while the child holds their hand on the facility dog's stomach/chest.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Mindfulness Activity led by CCLS and Facility Dog

Child life specialist led mindfulness

Active Comparator group

Description:

Participants will receive a 20-minute mindfulness coping intervention from a CCLS. The CCLS will introduce themselves and their role and explain the activity and then implement a guided mindfulness activity while the child holds a stress ball.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Mindfulness Activity led by CCLS

Child life activity coordinator led coloring activity

Other group

Description:

Participants will complete a 20-minute coloring activity facilitated by a Child Life Activity Coordinator (CLAC). Children aged 8-12 years old will be provided a medical dog coloring sheet with crayons; children aged 13-17 years old will be provided an adult coloring sheet that uses a dog image and colored pencils.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Coloring page activity led by CLAC