Child Play Specialist e Child Life Specialist: ruolo, evoluzione storica e benefici per il paziente pediatrico. Una rassegna della letteratura

2021 ◽  
pp. 57-81
Author(s):  
Giulia Perasso ◽  
Chiara Allegri ◽  
Gloria Camurati
Keyword(s):  
Sono State ◽  
Child Life ◽  
Child Life Specialist ◽  
Child Play

Il gioco rappresenta un diritto fondamentale del bambino ed assume un ruolo cruciale du-rante l'esperienza dell'ospedalizzazione. Le figure del Child Play Specialist e del Child Life Specialist (riconosciute rispettivamente nel sistema sanitario del Regno Unito e degli Stati Uni-ti) forniscono programmi di gioco che normalizzino l'esperienza di ricovero del bambino e aiutino la familiarizzazione con il contesto medico. La presente rassegna persegue tre principali obiettivi: i. definire il ruolo dello specialista del gioco, la sua formazione, le tecniche implemen-tate, le aree di similitudine e differenza tra CPS e CLS; ii. esaminare l'evoluzione storica di questa professione; iii. indagare gli effetti dell'intervento dello specialista del gioco sulla salute bio-psico-sociale del paziente pediatrico. Di 613 fonti complessive (n=193 da Scopus, n=403 da Pubmed, n=17 da PsycInfo), 17 pubblicazioni sono state incluse, avendo applicato criteri inerenti lingua, tipologia di pubblicazione e pertinenza dei contenuti. Dalle fonti esaminate ri-sulta che: I. CLS e CPS presentano percorsi di training e tecniche simili. Emergono peculiarità di approccio diverse per CPS e CLS; II. Le esperienze pionieristiche di programmi di gioco in ospedale risalgono agli anni '20 con contributi significativi di Plank, Bergmann e Brooks; III. I principali effetti sulla salute infantile documentati sono il potenziamento del coping e la ridu-zione del ricorso a terapie farmacologiche per la gestione del dolore. Si evidenzia la necessità di un consenso internazionale sulla definizione del ruolo dello specialista del gioco, al fine di accrescere la ricerca empirica rispetto a tali professionisti della salute.

„Child Life Specialist“-Interventionen in der klinischen pädiatrischen Versorgung: Ein systematischer Review zu Effekten auf psychische Gesundheitsparameter von Kindern und Jugendlichen

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia Hummel ◽  
Michaela Coenen ◽  
Varinka Voigt-Blaurock ◽  
Christoph Klein ◽  
Caroline Jung-Sievers
Keyword(s):  
Child Life ◽  
Child Life Specialist ◽  
Systematischer Review ◽  
Randomisierte Kontrollierte Studien ◽  
Child Life Specialists ◽  
Systematische Literatursuche ◽  
Kontrollierte Studien

Zusammenfassung Ziel der Studie Krankenhausaufenthalte können bei Kindern zu psychischen Belastungen führen, die in der Regelversorgung häufig nicht ausreichend adressiert werden. Ein neuer Ansatz ist es, spezialisierte psychosoziale Fachkräfte, sog. Child Life Specialists (CLS), in die klinische Versorgung einzubinden. CLS begleiten Kinder durch den Klinikalltag und können Belastungen durch gezielte Interventionen auffangen und das Wohlbefinden der PatientInnen fördern. Ziel dieser Arbeit ist es, die Effekte von CLS-Interventionen auf Angst, Schmerz und Stress von Kindern im klinischen Kontext zu analysieren. Methodik Es wurde eine systematische Literatursuche in den Datenbanken Medline, Embase und PsycINFO durchgeführt. Die Ergebnisse wurden in tabellarischer und graphischer Form dargestellt. Ergebnisse Es wurden vier randomisierte kontrollierte Studien (RCTs) eingeschlossen, die die Effekte von CLS-Interventionen bei 459 Kindern im Alter von 0–15 Jahren untersuchten. Eine signifikante Verbesserung der Zielkriterien wurde jeweils in mindestens einer Studie berichtet. Bei allen Studien ist von einem mittleren bis hohen Verzerrungsrisiko auszugehen. Schlussfolgerung In den eingeschlossenen RCTs werden positive Effekte von CLS-Interventionen auf Ergebnisvariablen psychischer Gesundheit von Kindern im klinischen Setting berichtet. Aufgrund der geringen Anzahl von Studien sowie deren Heterogenität und Qualität ist weitere Forschung notwendig.

Child life interventions in paediatric pain

2013 ◽  
pp. 543-549
Author(s):  
Chantal K. LeBlanc ◽  
Christine T. Chambers
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Historical Perspective ◽  
Health Care Team ◽  
Child Life ◽  
Hospitalized Children ◽  
Child Life Specialist ◽  
Psychosocial Needs ◽  
Child Life Specialists ◽  
And Coping

Child life specialists, as members of the health care team, are frequently involved in the assessment and management of pain in hospitalized children and children in emergency settings. Child life refers to a non-medical therapeutic service designed to address the developmental, educational, and psychosocial needs of paediatric patients. Child life specialists are professionals who ‘promote effective coping through play, preparation, education, and self-expression activities. They provide emotional support for families, and encourage optimum development of children facing a broad range of challenging experiences, particularly those related to healthcare and hospitalization’ (Child Life Council, 2012a), including painful procedures and coping with other types of pain (e.g. postoperative pain). This chapter provides an overview of the role of a child life specialist, including a historical perspective on the evolution of the field and current child life practices. The chapter then provides a summary of the specific contributions of child life specialists to pain assessment and management, including innovative uses of technology often facilitated by child life specialists.

scholarly journals Development and implementation of a novel child life protocol to enhance psychosocial support for pediatric awake craniotomies: technical note

2020 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. E5
Author(s):  
Michael M. McDowell ◽  
Daniela Ortega Peraza ◽  
Taylor J. Abel
Keyword(s):  
Prospective Studies ◽  
Positive Reinforcement ◽  
Psychosocial Support ◽  
Patient Experiences ◽  
Technical Note ◽  
Awake Craniotomy ◽  
Child Life ◽  
Child Life Specialist ◽  
Patient Tolerance ◽  
Eloquent Cortex

Awake craniotomies are a crucial tool for identifying eloquent cortex, but significant limitations frequently related to patient tolerance have limited their applicability in pediatric cases. The authors describe a comprehensive, longitudinal protocol developed in collaboration with a certified child life specialist (CCLS) in order to enhance patient experiences and develop resiliency related to the intraoperative portion of cases. This protocol includes preoperative conditioning, intraoperative support, and postoperative positive reinforcement and debriefing. A unique coping plan is developed for each prospective patient. With appropriate support, awake craniotomy may be applicable in a wider array of preadolescent and adolescent patients than has previously been possible. Future prospective studies are needed to validate this approach.

Child Life Programs

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1993 ◽  
Vol 91 (3) ◽  
pp. 671-673
Author(s):  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Medical Care ◽  
Family Involvement ◽  
Health Care Team ◽  
Child Life ◽  
Hospital Environment ◽  
Child Life Specialist ◽  
Child Life Specialists ◽  
Group Settings ◽  
Inpatient Settings

Child life programs have become the standard in pediatric settings to address the psychosocial concerns that accompany hospitalization and medical care. Child life specialists facilitate coping and the adjustment of children and families by providing play experiences, presenting information about events and procedures, and establishing supportive relationships with children and parents to encourage family involvement in each child's medical care. These activities are shared by other members of the health care team. The role of the child life specialist, however, is unique because it combines each of these services as the primary duty. The child life specialist focuses on the strengths and health of children.1 Most major hospitals for children have child life programs, and the number of these has doubled since 1965. The patient-to-staff ratio should not exceed 15 patients to 1 child life specialist. Child life or similar services should be offered by all hospitals. Most child life specialists work in inpatient settings, but they are increasingly serving outpatient populations. Certification of child life specialists is available through the Child Life Certifying Commission, which was established in 1986. PLAY Play is the core of the child life program. Play activities are offered both in group settings and individual sessions. Play opportunities in health care settings communicate a respect for and understanding of children. Play helps eliminate the distinction between the comfortable and familiar setting outside the hospital and the foreign and intimidating hospital environment. Play contributes to the child's adjustment in several important ways. By providing age-appropriate activities, the possibility that hospitalization may disrupt normal development is minimized.

Feasibility of a child life specialist program for oncology patients with minor children at home: Qualitative analysis.

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (28_suppl) ◽  
pp. 30-30
Author(s):  
David Lysecki ◽  
Daryl Bainbridge ◽  
Tracy Akitt ◽  
Georgia Georgiou ◽  
Ralph M. Meyer ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Focus Group ◽  
Psychosocial Support ◽  
Value Added ◽  
Child Life ◽  
Child Life Specialist ◽  
360 Degree Feedback ◽  
Centered Care ◽  
Support Team ◽  
Minor Children ◽  
Family Centered

30 Background: Up to 24% of adult oncology patients have minor children at home, who may experience negative short- and long-term health outcomes as a result. Typical support networks often fail to meet the needs of these families. To address this, an innovative Child Life Specialist (CLS) program was embedded within the psychosocial support team at a tertiary oncology center. The program provided direct consultation to families (adults and children) including guidance on talking with children, provision of resources, diagnostic teaching, end-of-life support, grief support, and emotional expression. Methods: To understand the feasibility of this program (including acceptability, demand, implementation, practicality, adaptation, integration, expansion, and preliminary measures of impact), we collected 360-degree feedback from impacted stakeholders. At least two months following an encounter with the CLS, families were offered participation in a semi-structured interview (via purposive selection to capture multiple perspectives, including patients, non-patient parents/family members, and children aged 10-17). At the end of the pilot, two focus groups were held consisting of clinicians who engaged with the program. A thematic analysis was completed from the interview/focus group discussion transcripts. Results: 15 interviews were completed with adults (ten with patients, five with non-patient parents/other family members). Emergent themes were: Establishing comfort, Allaying parent apprehension, Coaching and reassurance, Value added, Integration, Impact of Covid-19, and Areas for development. In three interviews with children, the emergent themes were: Building rapport, Developmentally appropriate approaches, Understanding and managing emotions, Improving communication, and Areas for development. The first focus group included the CLS and two clinical leads of the psychosocial support team. Emergent themes from this discussion were: Promotion of the program, Accessibility, Role of social work, Impact of Covid-19, and Adopting a virtual approach. The second focus group consisted of three inpatient social workers, and the emergent themes were: Expertise, Accessibility, Allaying parent apprehension, Value added, Impact of Covid-19, and Areas for development. Synthesis of data identified five overall key themes: Awareness, Integration, Value added, Family-centered care, and Impact of Covid-19. Conclusions: This study conducted qualitative analysis of 360-degree feedback on the CLS pilot program. The analysis demonstrated that program was felt to add value, integrate well with current systems, and represent high-quality, family-centered care. This pilot occurred during the Covid-19 pandemic, the impacts of which were represented in this study.

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