How Essential Oils Can Work
for Diverse Patient Care
Patient satisfaction rates are now a critical marker of success for
health care institutions. It's one of the reasons why the medical
sector is taking a cue from the tech industry with the introduction
of human-centered design: a creative problem-solving approach
whereby products are designed in accordance with the needs
and behaviors of those who use them.
One area that has seen a growing body of evidence is the
impact of scent on patient experience. Studies have found
that odor-evoked memory can significantly affect emotion
and pain perception, like the negative scent bias many
patients have against isopropyl alcohol and its association
with painful procedures such as IV insertions. Retailers have
found that customers rate their experience as more tolerable
when a pleasant aroma is encountered during an unpleasant
occurrence, such as waiting in line. Hospitals have observed
this too: patients report greater satisfaction when they
encounter pleasant scents during postoperative treatment,
even if their symptoms are not completely relieved.
But it's not just emotional: scent diffusion in health care is a
proven, highly-effective management tool for perioperative
nausea and anxiety, while studies in both Japan and the U.S.
have suggested that scent therapy improves cognitive
functioning in patients with Alzheimer's disease, and assists
those with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) to better manage
their symptoms.
This is where essential oils (EOs) come in. For patients with
specific needs and preferences, essential oil therapy is a viable
alternative, providing comfort that is low-risk, drug-free and
pleasing to the senses. Used for centuries, it is only in the last
two decades – with the introduction of new safety innovations
– that EO use in hospitals has been adopted as a mainstream
management tool.
Soothing Scents, the maker of QueaseEASE – the first essential oil
product designed specifically for the health care environment –
has spent the last 15 years working with hospitals and nurses to
perfect delivery systems that are compatible with those needs.
By offering inhalation only devices that prevent skin contact with
the essential oils, Soothing Scents provides a nursing intervention
that manages the needs of an increasingly diverse patient
population.
Soothing Scents offers essential oil-based interventions to
assist with patient nausea and anxiety, during and after their
hospital stay. To read our research, or to place your first order,
visit www.soothing-scents.com. (Free shipping to all 50
states, available in bulk packs, no doctor's order required)
How essential oils can help diverse patients
• Ef fective alternative to alcohol prep pads
• Promotes feelings of calm for stressed patients
• Drug-free for patients with multiple prescriptions
• Clinically shown to benefit patients with ADS
or Alzheimer's disease
FREE SAMPLE KITS AVAILABLE
soothingscents.com/medical
QueaseEASE for nausea
management
STILL for anxiety
management
