Utilizing Animal-Assisted Interventions as a Complementary Health Practice in Pediatric Oncology Settings

Receiving a cancer diagnosis at any point in your lifetime is never easy, but for many families whose child or sibling has been diagnosed with childhood cancer, the psychosocial effects of this diagnosis can be devastating. While childhood cancer rates have increased somewhat over the past 20 years, treatments have improved that have led to greater survival rates for nearly all forms of childhood cancers. With improved treatments, and survival rates, come new challenges to the field regarding the long-term, psychosocial effects of cancer treatment for children and their families. Utilizing animal-assisted interventions for children and families who are coping with childhood cancer is an innovative complementary health practice that has been subject to little empirical research. This current study utilizes a randomized control trial design in implementing an animal-assisted therapy program in several clinical pediatric oncology settings to examine what medical, behavioral, and mental health benefits animal-assisted interventions may have for children with cancer and their families. This session will describe the preliminary findings from this study, including the challenges in conducting research on incorporating animal-assisted therapy as a complementary health practices in pediatric oncology settings. In addition, participants will gain a greater understanding about the complex psychosocial issues that children and families face when dealing with childhood cancer, and will learn how animal-assisted interventions can affect the psychosocial outcomes for children and families coping with childhood cancer.