Helping Your Child With Pain

Here are some things you can do to partner with Seattle Children's Hospital to prevent and treat your child's pain.

Work with your child's healthcare team to identify and plan for your child's need for pain control

We use evidence-based tools to assess your child's pain. Your child's pain medication team can tell you about the tools we use. The document on assessing your child's pain (PDF) (Amharic) (Arabic) (Russian) (Simplified Chinese) (Somali) (Spanish) (Vietnamese) may help, too.

We also count on you to help us understand how your child expresses pain. Older children usually tell you about their pain. Younger children may show they are in pain by how they act and whether their routine changes. Children in pain may be quiet and less active, or restless and easily upset. They may lose their appetite or change their sleep patterns. They may cry, make a face or tense their bodies. Help us to treat your child's pain by letting us know what your child says or does that seems like a sign of pain.

Be an Active Member of the Team

We partner with you in the care of your child. This is rarely more important than it is when we assess and treat pain. You know your child best, and you can help us know what your child and family need.