The pediatric physiologic stress response: a concept analysis.

Pediatric nurses have had a long-standing interest in stress and its effect on infants and children. Recently, there has been increasing interest in the physiological stress response on the part of nurses. While in the pediatric critical care setting, nurses continually assess the physiologic stability of the critically ill child, as well as the child's responses to a variety of interpersonal interactions, clinical interventions, and treatments. This status is continually challenged by a multitude of stressors which induce subsequent responses by the child. Only through a better understanding of the age-appropriate physiologic stress response can nurses accurately confirm its presence and evaluate its potential consequences. A concept analysis of the pediatric physiological stress response was conducted, primarily using the strategy recommended by Walker and Avant (1988). Accordingly, this analysis included: (1) a literature review; (2) determination of possible uses of the concept; (3) selection of defining attributes; (4) identification of empirical referents; (5) identification of antecedents and consequences; (6) construction of model and alternative cases; and (7) review of implications for nursing research.