New guidelines aim to ease pain during vaccinations
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Researchers at the University of Toronto and The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, Ontario, Canada published an updated guideline with 16 recommendations to help people manage pain and fear during vaccinations.
Dr. Anna Taddio and colleagues found evidence-based strategies can reduce distress, but these methods aren’t always used in vaccination programs. The guideline builds on previous recommendations from 2015 and focuses on five areas, process, procedural, physical, pharmacological, and psychological, to offer a range of options.
Healthcare providers, organizations offering vaccinations, and people receiving vaccines can use the guidance to create a more comfortable experience. The authors suggest that those receiving vaccines and their caregivers should select the strategies that best suit their needs. Key recommendations include educating everyone involved about distress-reducing methods, using quick injection techniques, offering oral solutions to infants, applying topical anesthetics, and employing distraction techniques like toys, music, or games.
The guideline also introduces the CARD system, Comfort, Ask, Relax, Distract, to help people choose coping strategies before or during vaccination. The researchers hope these updated guidelines will reduce stigma around needles and increase vaccination rates, especially after declines in confidence and uptake observed since the COVID-19 pandemic. They believe a more positive vaccination experience can encourage people to get vaccinated in the future.
