Pawsitive Impacts of Therapy Dog Visits

The goal of this unique 18 month study is to better understand the experiences of pain patients in the Royal University Hospital (RUH) Emergency Department (ED), to create excellence in health care. The purpose is to measure the impact of visiting therapy dogs on reducing ED patient pain.

The goal of this unique 18 month study is to better understand the experiences of pain patients in the Royal University Hospital (RUH) Emergency Department (ED), to create excellence in health care. The purpose is to measure the impact of visiting therapy dogs on reducing ED patient pain. The background rationale is that pain is the primary reason individuals attend an ED, patient pain is generally not well managed in EDs, Saskatchewan EDs have among the longest wait times in the country, and anxiety associated with ED waiting can negatively impact patients' pain. Research suggests a therapy dog can change patients' perceptions of pain and its intensity and facilitate relaxation. The intervention will be examined for its impact on patients' sensory pain (i.e., physical pain severity), affective pain (i.e., emotional pain unpleasantness) and anxiety. It is important to find creative, low-cost ways to respond to patients attending the ED for pain. The primary objective of this study is to generate new health-related knowledge on the ED pain patient experience. The secondary objectives are to implement effective end-of-grant knowledge translation and dissemination strategies and undertake a successful model of collaborative, multidisciplinary research among researchers, patient advisors and system representatives, rooted in a One Health framework.

Consent will be obtained using a deceptive consent form, which will explain that this is a pain study, but will omit any information regarding therapy dogs. Once all measures are taken, the participants will be explained the deception and asked to sign the true consent form.

For the intervention group, patient interacts with the therapy dog, handler shares information about the therapy dog, asks about patient's pets, and offers a trading card of the therapy dog at the conclusion of the visit.

Number of Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (Revised Version) (ESAS-r) Pain Scores

Participants Stratified by Pain scores Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (revised version) (ESAS-r) 11-point rating scale (scale of 0 to 10), in which higher ratings indicate worse outcomes, Pain Scores at 20 Minutes Post Visit.

Pain score using the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (revised version) (ESAS-r) 11-point rating scale (scale of 0 to 10), in which higher ratings indicate worse outcomes.

Number of Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (Revised Version) (ESAS-r) Anxiety Scores

Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (revised version) (ESAS-r) 11-point rating scale (scale of 0 to 10), in which higher ratings indicate worse outcomes, Anxiety Scores at 20 Minutes Post Visit

Number of Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (Revised Version) (ESAS-r) Depression Scores

Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (revised version) (ESAS-r) 11-point rating scale (scale of 0 to 10), in which higher ratings indicate worse outcomes, Depression Scores at 20 Minutes Post Visit

Number of Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (Revised Version) (ESAS-r) Well-Being Scores

Participants Stratified by Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (revised version) (ESAS-r) 11-point rating scale (scale of 0 to 10), in which higher ratings indicate worse outcomes, Well-being Scores at 20 Minutes Post Visit.

Inclusion Criteria: Over the age of 18 Able to provide consent Attending the Emergency Department because of pain/discomfort Canadian Triage and Acuity Score (CTAS) of 2-5 Willing to visit with a therapy dog team (intervention group only) Exclusion Criteria: Pain medications (specifically immediate release acetaminophen and opioid analgesics) within an hour prior to the visit

Carey B, Dell CA, Stempien J, Tupper S, Rohr B, Carr E, Cruz M, Acoose S, Butt P, Broberg L, Collard L, Fele-Slaferek L, Fornssler C, Goodridge D, Gunderson J, McKenzie H, Rubin J, Shand J, Smith J, Trask J, Ukrainetz K, Meier S. Outcomes of a controlled trial with visiting therapy dog teams on pain in adults in an emergency department. PLoS One. 2022 Mar 9;17(3):e0262599. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0262599. eCollection 2022.