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Child Life Specialists help to make the hospital experience less stressful on children and their families

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    I love the field of Child Life and enjoy having this blog to network, learn, and share information with other people who are already in the field, or interested in pursuing a career in it. I post anything and everything from internships, to tips for parents, and Child Life in the news. I graduated from the University of Utah last year with my BS in Human Development and Family Studies with a Child Life Emphasis. I am currently planning on applying for the Child Life Internship at Primary Children's Medical Center in the fall. For readers who are new to the field, Child Life Specialists help to make the hospital experience a less scary one for children and the entire family. They aim to do this by providing step by step procedural preparations including informing the child (in an age appropriate detail) about what they will hear, smell, touch, taste, and see during a test or surgery. Child Life Specialists also provide developmentally appropriate play, distraction during tests, emotional support to the patient as well as the entire family, sibling education and support, and bereavement support if necessary. If you have any questions, comments, or information you would like to see here, I would love to hear from you! Feel free to contact me at sweetblueair[at]gmail.com

Archive for July 9th, 2008

Jul 09 2008

Books for kids battling cancer and another great article

Published by wordsforeverything under Uncategorized Edit This

Finding appropriate books to help kids understand cancer can be a challenge for parents, family, friends, as well as child life specialists. I’ve learned about two great ones that come highly recommended from fellow CCLS. The first is called H is for Hair Fairy and is available from amazon. The second one is available from amazon as well. It is called Kathy’s Hat’s and is suggested for kids from 4 to 8.

Also, here is an intriguing article about a numbing and cooling spray when used with children having to endure I.V. starts. Nurses and child life specialists were included and involved in this study. I know there were many times in my childhood that I could have benefited greatly from the use of something like that! I.V.’s were always extremely stressful for me and most of the time I passed out. It is refreshing to see stuff like this being used now. It helps so much with easing the stress for the parents and the child as well, especially in the emergency room.

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