KIDS LEARNING ABOUT SURGERY; HOSPITALS USE PUPPETS, FILMS TO TEACH KIDS ABOUT SURGERY

At Melinda's Magical Medicine Show, Melinda McCulley spoke to the gathering which included, from left, Gabe Sauer, Mary Jane Sauer and Stephen Sauer of Jackson.

McCulley uses puppets to present information about surgery to her young audience.

Mary Jane Sauer of Jackson remembers when she was little and had her tonsils out.

"My mom couldn't go in with me," Sauer said. "I was so scared I said words I wasn't supposed to say."

Sauer's two sons have had far better experiences in having their tonsils removed because they have participated in a pre-surgery program for children.

Sauer and her sons, Stephen, 12, and Gabe, 5, watched "Melinda's Magical Medicine Show" Sunday at Southeast Missouri Hospital. Stephen is having his tonsils removed this week, and Gabe had his removed two years ago, after seeing the puppet show.

Sauer said she didn't know what to expect the first time she and Gabe saw the show. But she was so impressed she came back again when Stephen needed minor surgery. "The show helped because it explained everything," Sauer said.

Gabe agreed. "I wasn't scared at all," he said.

Both Cape Girardeau hospitals, Southeast and St. Francis Medical Center, have special programs and training to deal with fears young children may have when facing surgery.

"Melinda's Magical Medicine Show" was created and is presented by Melinda McCulley, who has been doing the show at Southeast Hospital every Sunday afternoon since 1983.

The purpose of the show is to familiarize children facing surgery with what they are going to experience and thus allay their fears.

The show stars puppets named Dr. Fun, Nurse Nancy and Frog. They and other puppets -- with McCulley providing the various voices -- talk to each other and to the children about the details of pre- and post-surgery.

The children are absorbed into the show immediately, in part because the puppets and their talk are so down-to-earth and believable.

Frog, a patient himself, tells the children that they must not eat or drink anything the morning of their surgery. "Don't even brush your teeth or chew gum," he says. "You must not swallow anything, or you might get sick during surgery."

The children are told about everything they will experience, such as the IV tube, which is called Herbie in the show.

But the talk isn't basically negative. The puppets, and McCulley later, put a heavy emphasis on the "fun" part of surgery.

"After surgery, you'll get to have a breakfast of Popsicles, Jello and sodas, and later ice cream," Frog says.

And McCulley makes the puppets even more effective by having them address each child in the audience by name numerous times throughout the performance. (McCulley meets the children and writes down their names prior to the show.)

"I watch the children in the audience through a one-way glass window, and when I see them react to something, such as the IV, I address each child's personal anxieties and fears," said McCulley.

But the puppets are only a part of the complete show. After the puppets have discussed the details of their surgery, McCulley comes out and quizzes the children to reinforce what they have learned from the puppets.

As she asks questions and repeats information, McCulley hands out surgical gowns, face masks, hats and shoe coverings and lets the children dress up like the doctors and nurses they will encounter during the surgical process.

Then, McCulley gives the children and their parents a guided tour of the surgical area. They are shown the lab, where blood samples are taken; the pre-op room, where patients and parents watch TV and wait for surgery; the "Magic Door," where the patient must "give Mom a big kiss and say `See ya later'"; and the recovery room (the "Wakeup Room"), where the patients will get to see mom and dad as soon as they wake up.

"I can see a big difference between kids who have been to Melinda's show and those who haven't," said Dr. Richard A. Martin, an ear, nose and throat surgeon who performs many pediatric operations. "She has a way of calming their fears. The kids who have been to her show are calmer pre-operatively and seem to take what comes post-operatively a little easier."

St. Francis Medical Center also has teaching tools aimed at helping children face surgery.

Christy Adams, pediatrics nurse at St. Francis, said parents are given home instruction sheets prior to surgery. "Sometimes parents' minds are clearer before surgery than they are after," she said.

Adams said the pediatrics department has two training videos that are shown to children before surgery. Also, children and parents can look through a series of pamphlets with pictures, called "Ped's Pals," which address surgical and diagnostic procedures.

"And," said Adams, "we take the children on tours of the areas where the surgery will be done, along with the pediatric area if they're spending the night."

Most of the pre-op work done with children, Adams said, is done two or three days before surgery when the children come for pre-admission testing.

"And we have home follow-up," said Adams, "where we call two or three days after discharge to see if everything's OK."