The objective of this study was to investigate the effect of a cognitive intervention (distraction and reappraisal) with information given pre-operatively on post-operative outcomes of Chinese women having an abdominal hysterectomy. Using a controlled trial, 48 Chinese women having elective hysterectomy received the cognitive intervention with information (experimental group). A control group (n=48) received information alone. Outcome measures used in the study were post-operative anxiety and pain, requests for analgesia and patient satisfaction. The results show that women in the experimental group reported lower post-operative anxiety scores, lower pain scores and higher levels of satisfaction than women in the control group. There were no statistically significant differences in post-operative requests for analgesia between the groups. It is concluded that a cognitive intervention such as distraction and reappraisal may have significant clinical benefits and improve the care of women having an elective hysterectomy.