Essay Example on Animal-Assisted Therapy Improves Outpatient Oncological Treatment in Teens

A study by Silva and Osorio (2018) evaluates how animal-assisted therapy (AAT) improves the treatment of physical and mental health conditions. The research had two objectives. First, it aimed at proposing safety protocols and effective interventions for performing pet therapy. Secondly, the study aimed at evaluating the efficacy of AAT in teenagers receiving outpatient oncological treatment. The researchers studied this efficacy based on physiological, and psychological indicators besides the quality of life parameter. In this study, the researchers used a Labrador retriever, and a Golden retriever to perform sensory stimulation and gait training. The authors used a sample size of 24 children that were diagnosed with solid tumors and leukemia. All the teens participated in an open group pet therapy program of a 30-minute session. The researchers used validated self-evaluation tools to analyze variables such as depression, anxiety, moods, pain, and stress. However, AAT builds on the pre-existing pet-human bond to improve the quality of life. Hospitals, thus, should embrace animal-assisted therapy since it helps patients to cope or recover from oncological health conditions.

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After reviewing the article, I noted that I had a proper understanding of field-specific terminologies used. In this way, there was no terminology that I learned for the first time while reviewing the article. The authors, however, used important terms as far as the topic of animal-assisted therapy is concerned. Some of these terminologies are Labrador retriever, Golden retriever, and pet handler, among other words. However, I identified two assumptions underlying the study. First, the researchers assumed that all the participants responded to self-applied instruments honestly. Notably, all children in the study were between 6 to 12 years. Considering the age brackets, it is an assumption that children responded to self-assessment questionnaires honestly and candidly. Secondly, it is assumed that there were no other factors besides AAT programs that influenced psychological variables such as anxiety, moods, and depression.

A quasi-experimental design was used to determine the influence of AAT on the efficacy of oncological treatment. However, the sample size was not estimated statistically using any method. The researchers, instead, assessed the eligibility of children n=4983 to participate in the study. The participants were on outpatient care in an oncology healthcare facility. Out of 4983 teens, the researchers selected 24 of them to participate in the study. In this regard, the researchers designed an inclusion and exclusion criteria to select suitable participants. The inclusion methodology was as follows: the children should be diagnosed with acute lymphoid leukemia and solid tumors, both genders aged 6 to 12, and should have the authorization to participate. Another condition was that the children should be under outpatient oncological treatment. The exclusion criteria, on the other hand, were, allergy to pet animals, inability to respond to self-applied tools, surgical wounds, and lack of interest.

The outcome variables were analyzed using various self-applied instruments, including Child Stress Symptoms Inventory, Child Depression Inventory, and Quality of Life Evaluation Scale. The other tools were Faces Pain Scale, AAT Assessment Questionnaire, and Adapted Brunel Mood Scale. The researchers analyzed the data using SPSS software (version 18). Clinical characteristics and socio-demographic aspects, on the other hand, were analyzed using descriptive statistics.

The researchers used a sample size n=24 from a population of 4983 children. A sample size of 24 participants is not appropriate since it has a large margin of error of 20.4% (using confidence interval formula 1/N, where N= sample size). This aspect implies that there was a 20.4% possibility that the sample size used would differ from the characteristics of a larger population. The confidence level for this sample size is 79.6%. The researchers, therefore, should have used a sample size that has a 90-95% confidence level.

There are several ethical considerations in the article. The first one is informed consent, where the researchers sought permission from parents before involving their children in research. It was necessary to obtain informed consent since the participants were below a minimum legal age. Secondly, the researchers considered an ethical component of voluntary participation. Since lack of interest was one of the factors in the exclusion criteria, all participants were free from coercion and any form of manipulation. Thirdly, researchers mitigated the harm that could arise from the study (beneficence). Notably, the researchers involved oncology specialists to minimize the chances of complications that could endanger the participants. Also, pet handlers selected healthy Golden retriever and Labrador retrievers besides involving veterinary surgeons to ensure the animals were healthy and can interact with children. The exclusion criteria also considered children allergic to animals and thus an indication that important ethical issues were considered.

The results of the research indicates that animal therapy has positive outcome on children's oncological treatment. The researchers observed that there was a decline in stress (d = -1.404; p = 0.005), irritation (d= -0.917; p =0.041), and pain (d = -0.894; p = 0.046). The authors further observed that there was improvement of depression (d = -0.801; p = 0.069). Concerning caregivers, there was an improvement in mental distress (d = -1.350; p = 0.006), anxiety (d = -1.312; p = 0.007) and tension (d = -1.361; p = 0.006).

The researchers concluded that the proposed animal-assisted therapy program is effective for patients under outpatient oncological treatment since it reduces pain, depression, anxiety, stress, and pain. Also, it improves the quality of life besides reducing tension and mental confusion. This program involves three-30 minutes session where kids interact with Labrador retriever and Golden retrievers through activities such as socialization, gait training, and sensory stimulation. Also, dog safety precautions, participant selection criteria, and the hospital environment are suitable for AAT. Medical personnel accepted the program since it was free from complications, and therefore, people conducting animal-assisted therapy should adopt it.

The study had three limitations. First, there was no control group to enable researchers to identify and minimize the effects of dependent variables on the overall research. Absence of control groups, thus, reduced the reliability of the results since the impact of dependent variables on the study were not identified and addressed. Secondly, the sample size was not statistically determined, besides being relatively small. Thirdly, the researchers restricted the composition of the sample size to children with specified types of tumors. The results, therefore, are limited since it is not representatives of children with other health conditions.

While the researchers achieved their objectives, several considerations could have improved the reliability of the study and its results. First, the researchers should have established a control group. It was necessary since control experiments act as the basis of isolating dependent variables. Also, control groups could have provided data for comparison with the actual outcome. Secondly, the researchers should have determined the sample size statistically to minimize a margin of error. This approach could have improved the confidence interval and the reliability of the results in decision-making.

Reference

Silva, N. B., & Osorio, F. L. (2018). Impact of an animal-assisted therapy program on physiological and psychosocial variables of pediatric oncology patients. PLOS ONE, 13(4), e0194731. Retrieved 30 September 2019, from https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0194731&type=printable/url/