Caring for kids: Child life program
extends whole-person care to children
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| When explaining a surgical procedure, child life specialist James Ball meets kids on a level they can understand. |
"Bring him home!" 3-year-old Elena would cry. Why did her big brother Steven have to go away to the hospital? She didn't understand.
Since birth, Steven Brown had constantly been sick with pneumonia and bronchitis. Wondering what she was doing wrong, his mother, Francine, took him to the hospital. It wasn't her fault. Eightmonth-old Steven, doctors informed her, had cystic fibrosis (CF).
Transported to Loma Linda University Children's Hospital the day he was diagnosed, Steven, now 9 years old, has virtually grown up in the Children's Hospital through his frequent inpatient visits. Often, these stays can last up to 21 days.
"Children shouldn't be in the hospital," states Leslie Young, MS, director of the child life program at Children's Hospital, "but when they have to come in, it is up to us to provide an environment where they get help medically and to ensure that their growth and development doesn't stop."
Originally started to provide a play environment for hospitalized children, the child life program has since developed into much more. "Child life," explains Leslie, "looks at the whole child--social, emotional, developmental, and physical aspects. What we do is not just medical."
Child life is dedicated to helping children in five specific areas: education, pain management, diversion, grief, and psychosocial. Child life specialists strive to meet these needs for medically fragile children, as well as befriend and become their advocate while they are hospitalized.
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| Although frequent visits are necessary to keep Steven healthy, the Children's Hospital is still a place he finds fun. Steven plays "Guess Who?" with activity room worker Bianca Galvin. |
Using books, dolls, and any other props needed, child life specialists thoroughly explain medical procedures to children in a way they can understand. "If a child is part of things and knows what is going on, a trusting bond develops with the medical staff. This enables us to do more for a child and turns their hospital experience into a positive one," tells Leslie.
Also, a child life specialist is a "safe person" who does not participate in any medical procedure, other than to provide comfort to a child. "Just knowing that I am a safe person--having a child trust me--that is really great," says child life specialist James Ball. "I like it when I leave and the kids are smiling. It makes me happy to know they are doing well."
For families with medically fragile children, the trust and bonds built with child life counselors mean a great deal. "I don't like leaving my children alone," admits Francine Brown, "but if I have to leave Steven, I know he is in good hands with child life."
When Steven finds out he must be admitted, the first thing he does is call to see if James will be there for him. "I like James a lot," tells Steven. "He is fun, and sometimes he's funny too. When I had my surgery, he explained everything so I could understand."
When Steven lost a playmate who also had CF, James explained what death and grief were--how sometimes we have to say goodbye. "I didn't know how to break the news to Steven when his playmate died," tells Francine. "The child life specialists told me to bring him in. They would help him understand."
Steven says he doesn't mind being admitted to the Children's Hospital. Making friends in the A. Gary Anderson Family Foundation Activity Room and surfing the Starbrite World computer network keep his mind off of treatments. "I can't wait until I am 12," says Steven, "because then I get to go into the teen part of the playroom." Steven's eyes light up as he describes the big screen TV, radios, and "really cool computer games" set aside for older patients.
Part of the child life curriculum, the Anderson Activity Room is a venue for sick children to cope with their illnesses, meet other kids, and have a childhood while they are hospitalized.
Part of the child life curriculum, the Anderson Activity Room is a venue for sick children to cope with their illnesses, meet other kids, and have a childhood while they are hospitalized.
Designed by a child life specialist, the playroom includes a medical play area--complete with toy stethoscopes and x-ray boards--where children can reenact their procedures and cope with what they've just been through. Best of all, the playroom is a safe place--no medical procedures take place here; not even a stethoscope is held up to a child's chest.
Thanks to child life, Steven's little sister, Elena, now understands what happens when big brother has to go to the hospital. Taking time to thoroughly explain her brother's condition, child life has helped her cope. "It'd been hard for me to explain it to her," tells Francine. "She would cry and think I sent him away. Now she knows."
According to Leslie, helping kids and their families cope with the hospital experience is the essence of the child life program. "We can't take away what the child is going through," she affirms, "but we can change the context. We can be there for the child and create an open, trusting environment."
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