Correspondence and Reprint requests : Lavanya Subhashini, Lecturer, Sri Devaraj Urs College of Nursing, Tamaka, Kolar, Karnataka-563101, India. [DOI-10.1007/s12098-009-0154-6] [Received March 15, 2008; Accepted July 25, 2008] Original Article Knowledge, Attitude and Practices Among Health Care Professionals Regarding Pain Lavanya Subhashini, Manju Vatsa and Rakesh Lodha 1 College of Nursing and 1 Department of Pediatrics, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, India ABSTRACT Objective. To assess the knowledge, attitude and practices among health care professionals regarding pain in children. Methods. This was a prospective descriptive survey conducted at a tertiary care hospital in north India. A semi structured questionnaire regarding pain in children was administered to pediatric residents and nurses in a teaching hospital. The questionnaire consisted of 24 items, of which 18 items were rated on a 5-point scale (‘strongly agree’ to ‘strongly disagree’) and 6 items were open-ended questions. Results. The response rate was 89.5%. Of 77 participants, 47 (61.1%) were nurses and 30 (38.9%) were pediatric residents. The knowledge about pain scales among the studied healthcare professionals was not widespread. Majority of respondents believed that the best judge of intensity of pain is the child. Nearly two-thirds of the respondents felt that non-pharmacological measures were better to control pain and also their practices showed that most were willing to allow the parental presence during minor invasive procedures. Conclusion. There is need to improve the knowledge of health care personnel regarding pain assessment and management in children. [Indian J Pediatr 2009; 76 (9) : 913-916] E-mail: lavanya_subhashini@ yahoo.co.in Key words: Pain; Children; Health care professionals; Knowledge; Practice Pain is one of the most common adverse stimuli experienced by children, occurring as a result of injury, illness, and necessary medical procedures. It is associated with increased anxiety, avoidance, somatic symptoms, and increased parent distress. The pediatric acute pain experience involves the interaction of physiologic, psychological, behavioral, developmental, and situational factors. 1 An important responsibility of health care professionals who care for children is eliminating pain and suffering when possible. However, it has been documented that children are often under-treated for their pain. 2 Pain can be measured by self-report (what children say), biological markers (how their bodies react), and behavior (what children do). Pain is a subjective event and so self-report is best, if it is available. Unfortunately, in many infants, young children, or children with cognitive or physical impairments, self-report is not available and behavioral or biological measures must be used. 3 Numerous myths, insufficient knowledge among caregivers, and inadequate application of knowledge contribute to the lack of effective management. Personal values and beliefs of health care professionals about the meaning and value of pain in the development of the child (e.g., the belief that pain builds character) and the treatment of pain may interfere with the optimal recognition and treatment of pain for all children. 4 To improve the recognition and treatment of pain in sick children, health care professionals need to expand their knowledge, use appropriate assessment tools and techniques, anticipate painful experiences and intervene accordingly, use a multimodal approach to pain management, use a multidisciplinary approach when possible, involve families, and advocate for the use of effective pain management in children. 5 For improving this aspect of care, it is desirable to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of health care professionals. This will help in devising appropriate strategies to improve the knowledge and change the attitudes and practices for pain management. There has Indian Journal of Pediatrics, Volume 76—September, 2009 913