Services
School Re-Entry
When a child is ready to leave the hospital and return to school, part of his or her recovery is re-entry into their normal routine, especially school. The Child Life Outreach Program assists with these important transitions.
The main goals of the School Re-Entry Program include:
- Student and Family Transitional Support
- Prepare and support school Principal, Nurse, Teacher, Guidance Counselor and classmates
- Educate classmates with a visit to the classroom with the returning child
- Provide classroom teachers with a "Smiles To Go Kit" that will contain prepared supportive activities and ideas for classmates; this helps support the student through his or her chronic illness
- Assist with Educational Recommendations
Preparation and Coping
Outpatient Surgery/Well Child Visits/Hospital Support
The primary components of our Outpatient Surgery/ Well Child Visits/ Hospital Support Program Include:
- Build a trusting relationship to provide family centered care
- Implement developmentally appropriate medical information and preparation
- Provide opportunities for "medical play" for coping and mastery over their new skills
- Facilitate and encourage the expression of feelings through arts and craft activities
- Accompany for procedures, tests, or surgery
- In-home visits for chronic illnesses with activities to provide respite for caregivers
- Well-Child Visits - provide hands-on medical play and information about immunizations and diagnostic procedures, as well as coping strategies for the child to feel mastery over Doctor's office environment. Can be done in a group environment as well as one-on-one interaction.
Sibling Support
Provide a supportive and informative resource for siblings of the patient
The primary components of our Sibling Support program include:
- Build a trusting relationship to provide family centered care
- Provide preparation and break down medical language at their developmental level
- Implement art and craft activities to facilitate emotional expression
- Provide support and resources for extended family to encourage the connection of the sibling at home
- Provide preparation of medical items and hospital to encourage sibling visitation and accompany sibling
- Provide siblings with opportunities to ask questions to parents in supportive environment
- Provide and facilitate activities that siblings can do with patient
- Provide coping strategies for sibling and family as illness or hospitalization progresses and changes
- Bereavement Services