The effect of therapeutic play on fear and anxiety levels of pediatric oncology patients receiving chemotherapy

This study aimed to examine the impact of therapeutic play on the levels of fear and anxiety related to chemotherapy in pediatric oncology patients. As a secondary objective, it assesses the satisfaction of both children and parents with the applied therapeutic play. This research was developed as a single-group pretest-posttest applied, prospective semiexperimental design. The study was conducted with 40 pediatric oncology patients aged 5-12 and their parents. The data collection tools used included the Child Information Form, Child Fear Scale (CFS), Child Anxiety Scale-State (CAS-S), and Satisfaction Scale. Within the scope of the research, while routine care of the clinic was applied to children at the beginning of the first cycle, therapeutic play intervention was implemented in the subsequent cycles. The levels of fear and anxiety related to chemotherapy were assessed at the beginning and end of each cycle. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Mann-Whitney U, Kruskal-Wallis test, Wil, Wilcoxon Signed Rankelation tests. Of the children, 65% were male, and the average age was 8.98±2.76. A statistically significant decrease was observed in CAS-S scores at the end of the second cycle compared to the first cycle (p<0.001). Similarly, a statistically significant decrease was found in CFS scores at the end of the second cycle compared to the first cycle (p<0.001). There was also a statistically significant decrease in CFS scores at the end of the first cycle compared to the beginning of the first cycle (p<0.001). The decrease in CFS scores at the end of the second cycle compared to the beginning of the second cycle was statistically significant (p<0.001). According to the research findings, a significant decrease in the levels of fear and anxiety related to chemotherapy was observed in children before and after treatment assessments. Furthermore, it was determined that the decrease in fear and anxiety associated with treatment increased as the treatment ed. The results of the research suggest that therapeutic play can be an effective method in reducing fear and anxiety levels related to chemotherapy in pediatric oncology patients. Therefore, therapeutic play is recommended to reduce children's fears related to chemotherapy from diagnosis. Keywords: Child; cancer; therapeutic play; nurse; fear; anxiety