reflective account
Whilst working on a surgical ward I had the opportunity to attend a clinical session for children. I was involved in the process of admitting the patients as they arrived in the morning. This involved taking the child observations, weighing them, and recording of information. This was carried out in a room where all children and their parents had to wait prior to going through to anaesthetic room where they were anesthetised for their operation. There were approximately 8 children in the room at any one time, and in the centre of the room was a table with toys and colouring equipment. The children could play together and this helped take their mind off what was happening. During the process the anaesthetist attended the room to talk to the parents and have the consent forms signed. I had admitted a 4 year old girl who was having surgery to have bilateral grommets and an adenoidectomy. When the anaesthetist arrived to talk to her parents the girl was at the table playing with the other children, the parents informed him that they had not told the girl she was having an operation. They had told her she was coming to the hospital to play with other children, and their wish was that the medical staff were not to tell the girl either. I was asked by the anaesthetist to play along with this explanation, which meant that as I accompanied het to the anaesthetic room I had to tell her we were going to another room to read a book. I did have the responsibility to read to the children when they were on the table whilst the staff were preparing the child for the anaesthetic so this was in part true. However I did feel very uncomfortable about the situation and thought that the child should have been told what was happening rather than mislead her, even though the parents thought it was for her benefit. They believed that if she did not know what was going to happen she would not be worried and upset. The child was compliant with everything we...