Feasibility and Acceptability of Reiki Therapy for Children Receiving Palliative Care in the Home.
Susan E Thrane, Scott H Maurer, Cynthia A Danford
PMID 33252426WHAT IT FOUND
Two home Reiki sessions were feasible: 16 children and their parents completed the study.
Five children and 13 mothers described feeling better, including relaxation, calm, less pain, and happiness. This supports testing, not proving benefit.
Key findings
01Sixteen parent-child dyads completed the study after two home Reiki sessions.
02Interviews produced three themes: feeling better, hard to judge, and still going on; feeling better included relaxation, less pain, calm, happiness, and warmth.
03All children and mothers described Reiki as well received, and most dyads wanted to continue.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Only 16 dyads completed the study, and they were recruited from one pediatric palliative care service, so the result may not apply elsewhere. The design was one-group, with no control visit, so the study cannot show whether Reiki caused the reported experiences. The principal investigator also completed recruitment, consent, and the intervention, which may have influenced participation and responses. Only 8 verbal children were included, and 1 refused the interview, limiting the child-reported experience. Families who allowed a stranger into their home or were already open to integrative therapies may have been more likely to participate and say positive things.
Declared interests
The paper is marked as supported by NIH extramural and non-U.S. government research support. No author conflict-of-interest statement is given in the supplied text.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that Reiki treats pain, anxiety, or other palliative symptoms. This was a single-group feasibility study of 16 dyads, and it did not include a control group.