Sorry Not Sorry: Apologizing and Its Effect on Discomfort During Dressing Removal

London Health Sciences Centre

Status: Completed

Conditions: Empathy; Pain; Bandages

Treatments: Behavioral: Saying "sorry"

Study type: Interventional

Funder types: Other

Identifiers

NCT03216629

109333

Details and patient eligibility

About

Use of dressing is common place following surgery, allowing for wounds to be covered and protected. Dressing material with adhesive contact layers or adhesive tape is integral to sealing off the wound. Mechanical stripping of stratum corneum during dressing removal causes pain and discomfort. During dressing removal, practitioners may at times apologize as a function of empathy. Previous study investigated speed of dressing removal and its effect on discomfort during dressing change. In this study, the investigators aim to investigate how empathy expressed in form of saying "sorry" affect the perception of pain during dressing change?

Enrollment: 25 patients

Sex: All

Ages: 18+ years old

Volunteers: Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion criteria

• Healthy adult volunteers, age >18.

Exclusion criteria

• individuals with sensitivity to tape or dressing, anxiety disorders, or pain syndromes.

Trial design

Primary purpose: Treatment

Allocation: Randomized

Interventional model: Crossover Assignment

Masking: Single Blind

---

25 participants in 2 patient groups

Sorry

Experimental group

Description:

A small strip of self-adhesive dressing (3cm by 4cm) will be applied to the back of the patients' participants' hand and side of neck. After one minute of acclimatization, the dressing will be removed by the examiner. During the removal, the examiner will say sorry repeatedly. Following the dressing removal, participant will rate their pain with a 10 point visual analog scale.

Treatment:

Behavioral: Saying "sorry"

Not Sorry

No Intervention group

Description:

A small strip of self-adhesive dressing (3cm by 4cm) will be applied to the back of the patients' participants' hand and side of neck. After one minute of acclimatization, the dressing will be removed by the examiner. During the removal, the examiner will remain silent. Following the dressing removal, participant will rate their pain with a 10 point visual analog scale.