Child life specialists provide support for hospitalized children and their siblings, using play therapy to reduce stress and anxiety. They typically have a bachelor’s degree and undergo certification and background checks. Hospitals may offer informational tours and playrooms for children, and specialists may work with children in their hospital rooms. The job is rewarding but not highly paid.
A child life specialist works in a hospital setting to provide support for hospitalized children. In addition, the child life specialist contributes to the psychological well-being of siblings of hospitalized children or children of parents with a serious illness. The goal of the child life specialist is to reduce stress for the children and furthermore, reduce stress for the parents by providing care to the children during the day.
A child life specialist usually has a bachelor’s degree in the field, or in child development, education, or a similar area. He or she receives further training by conducting an internship in a hospital with a children’s life department. Most regions require certification in children’s life before allowing the person to be employed as a specialist. A child life specialist must also undergo fingerprinting and background checks before certification or employment.
Not all hospitals have such departments. Some rely instead on social workers and sometimes chaplains or freelance counselors to work with a child. Generally, however, most major hospitals and all children’s hospitals will have a large department of child life specialists.
One of the tasks of the child life specialist is to conduct informational tours for children who will be admitted to the hospital. If this option is not suggested when your child is about to be hospitalized, it is prudent to ask for it. These tours are usually conducted a few weeks before a scheduled hospitalization and are usually free. Visiting the hospital often can help ease a child’s fears.
The child life specialist may also supervise playrooms for hospitalized children and their siblings. Provided siblings or children of hospitalized parents don’t have a cold, fever or recent exposure to chicken pox, they can usually play in the playroom during all hours it is open. In this way, the child life specialist can engage the child, using both recreational and therapeutic play to ease anxieties. In addition to toys specifically geared towards the hospitalized child, playrooms also have plenty of regular toys and games, which can make hospital stays less boring and help kids focus on something other than being sick or having sick family members.
If a child is too sick to go to the playroom, a child life specialist can come to the child’s hospital room and use play therapy, or simply play with the child to help them stay mentally healthy during a hospital stay . They also usually have books or tapes on hand if your child wants to learn more about her condition, and they have a variety of age-appropriate toys for each child. They will also ask parents questions about the types of stress the child may be experiencing, to see if they can reduce the stress through play therapy.
For example, a child life specialist might find a child with a strong fear of blood tests and shots. In this case, the child life specialist might bring a tub of warm, soapy water into the room, with oral syringes that can be filled and refilled, so the syringe gradually becomes a less feared object. The goal is sometimes to incorporate as many normal hospital supplies as play items, so the child has a chance to learn more about these unfamiliar items.
Most child life specialists work for the opportunity to do valuable and rewarding, if sometimes difficult, work. In most cases, the monetary rewards are not substantial. Many specialists, however, find that the rewarding aspects of the job far outweigh the compensation.
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