A Study to Assess the Effectiveness of Helfer Skin Tap Technique on Pain During Intramuscular Injection Among Neonates Born in Labour Room of a Selected Tertiary Level Hospital, UP

Pain is a common and a ubiquitous sensation for children and adult. Every child has his or her own perception of pain. Routine immunizations are the most frequent painful medical procedure during childhood. A fundamental principle of responsible medical care is ‘do not hurt’ but ‘do not harm’ since pain is harmful to children, the care givers are committed in preventing harm to their patients. Pain is a major source of distress for children and their families as well as health care providers. Skin tapping (Helfer skin technique) is one of the methods which keeps the muscles relaxed and thus reduce pain while administering IM injection. Objective is to assess the pain level of neonate during intramuscular injection with usual standard technique. To assess the pain level of neonate during intra muscular injection with Helfer skin tap technique and to compare the pain level of neonates during intramuscular injection with and without the use of Helfer skin tap technique. Materials and Methods: Study design used is True experimental post test control design. Study setting includes Labour room in a selected tertiary care hospital. Study population is 100 new born babies. Sampling technique used is Purposive sampling to select the eligible population and simple random sampling is used to allocate the subjects into experiment and control group. Tools used include Neonatal Infant Pain Scale (NIPS). Results: The data collected was analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. The study findings high lights that 86 % of the neonates in the experimental group had mild pain, only 14% perceived severe pain during IM injection by using helfer skin tap technique. 86 % of the neonates in the control group had severe pain, only 14% perceived moderate pain during IM injection by using conventional routine technique There is a significant decrease in the pain score between the administration of IM injection with helfer skin tap technique with p <0.05. This study explored the effect of helfer skin technique (rhythmic tapping) over the skin before and during IM injection in relation to pain. The present study findings supported that there is a significant difference in the pain score in the IM administration with Helfer skin tap technique. This reduction in pain results in the better adaptation of neonates into the extra uterine environment.