In the laboratory with children
Prepare for sampling with your child together with Fimlab’s own Little Labby.
In the laboratory with children
Little Labby at the laboratory
A laboratory visit can be a stressful experience for a child. Tell your child about the examinations in advance. This helps ease the child’s fear and anxiety related to the laboratory examinations. The booklet below is intended for helping children prepare for their appointment. You can download it here or find it at one of our larger service locations.
Little Labby at the Laboratory booklet (pdf)
Before the visit
Please consider:
- Book an appointment for sample collection. For a child’s blood tests, you need to book a longer appointment from section “Blood tests and/or urine tests and/or electrocardiogram (ECG)” or two consecutive appointments from section “Blood tests”.
- Tell your child in advance that the needle can hurt or sting a little. It is important that the child will not be surprised by the pain.
- The injection site can be numbed before the appointment. You can buy a numbing cream sold in pharmacies without a prescription that is suitable for this purpose. Follow the instructions and apply the “magic ointment” on the bends of both elbows before the appointment.
Sampling
Distracting the child during the sample collection can help relieve their tension. For example, the child can bring a comforting toy to the laboratory.
It is important that the parent remains calm during the appointment. The child can sense the parent’s nervousness. The parent may also stay in the waiting room for the duration of the sample collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
To find out where we do screening for newborn metabolic disorders and bilirubin tests, please see the list of our service locations (filter service locations by service).
You can get more specific information by calling our customer advice service.
We take newborn heel samples in some of our service locations. To find out where we do screening for newborn metabolic disorders and bilirubin tests, please see the list of our service locations (filter service locations by service).
You can get more specific information by calling our customer advice service.
For a child you need to book a longer appointment from section ”Blood tests and/or urine tests and/or electrocardiogram (ECG)” or two consecutive appointments from section “Blood tests”.
Going to a laboratory can be a suspenseful experience. It is beneficial to tell the child about the examinations beforehand since being prepared reduces the fear and suspense related to a laboratory visit.
It is possible to numb the injection site before sampling. The numbing creams that pharmacies sell without a prescription are suitable for this purpose.
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