Nepalese school-age children's self-reported fears and coping strategies related to medical experiences.

The purpose of this study was to determine the fears of healthy Nepalese school-age children and their coping strategies relative to medical experiences. The sample consisted of 161 children from a private and a public school in Nepal. Consistent with cognitive developmental theory and coping theory, Nepalese school-age children were capable of reporting their fears of medical experiences and their coping strategies. Nepalese school-age children reported relatively moderate levels of fears and limited use of coping strategies. A significant difference was found between boys and girls self-reported fears (t=1.94, p=.05). There was no significant difference in children's fears based on the type of school attended. However there was a significant difference between public and private school children's report of frequently used coping strategies (t=4.10, p=. 000) and coping effectiveness (t=4.30, p=. 000). Nursing implications are discussed.