Coding with Pediatric Patients at King's College Hospital: Experience from a London Hospital

Abstract

' noy2 ygiή2 εn sώmati ygiεί '-Hippocrates Asclepiades The Patient Experience A ''healthy mind in a healthy body'' was a Hippocratic philosophy. According to Hippocrates, health and care provision would come in three ways: promotion of health, interventions in trauma care, and promotion of mental care [1]. This was more than two thousand years ago. The definition of health as defined by the World Health Organization was formulated in 1948. It describes health as ''a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease and infirmity'' [2]. A holistic approach to health (from the Greek word ''holos'' meaning ''whole'') is one that considers that the body, mind, and environment all contribute equally to health [3]. For effective health care provision, service users should feel comfortable in the environment they are in. An environment with anxious patients, rushing health care professionals, and hospital equipment can be overwhelming for most service users. This environment can be even more overwhelming for children. This may result in triggering stress, leading to emotional trauma, which in some cases could prolong recovery time. Play for children is a time for discovery, imitation, investigation, and imagination [4]. This should not be omitted during times of ill-health and hospitalization. At times of unease, pain, unfamiliarity, and potentially frightening experiences, play has the ability to produce comfort and support, for both mental and physical health. Evidence that play can hasten recovery, then, becomes an important factor in health care provision for children [5]. As a clinical scientist in medical imaging, the promotion of health and well-being was a completely new topic.