Hospital Experience
Through my volunteer experience at Children’s of Alabama, practicum at East Alabama Medical Center, and Child Life Internship at East Tennessee Children's Hospital, I have had the opportunity to work with hospitalized children ages 0-18 and their families under the supervision of a Certified Child Life Specialist. Each experience allowed me to develop and utilize skills essential to the duties of a Child Life Specialist and to be a part of an interdisciplinary medical team. The work that I have accomplished through my volunteer and practicum experience has prepared me to succeed as a child life specialist. The following artifacts provide an in-depth explanation of these experiences.
Child Life Internship at East Tennessee Children's Hospital-
Spring semester of 2022, I completed a 600+ hour child life internship at East Tennessee Children's Hospital in Knoxville, Tennessee. Throughout my time there, I mastered the core competencies of child life through supervised application in outpatient multidisciplinary and oncology clinics, inpatient units, emergency department, radiology, outpatient surgery, and the pediatric intensive care unit. I helped normalize the hospital environment for patients and families by providing opportunities for therapeutic play, family involvement in care, and consistency in routines. Additionally, I helped children cope with procedures and the hospital environment by facilitating developmentally appropriate procedural preparation, support, and medical play. During each rotation, I collaborated with the multidisciplinary health care team to advocate for the needs of patients and families and provide continuity of care. After completing my child life internship, I am prepared to start my career as a child life specialist and sit for the child life certification exam.
Child Life Practicum at East Alabama Medical Center-
Spring semester of 2021, I completed a child life practicum of over 150 hours working at East Alabama Medical Center on the General Pediatric Unit and the Emergency Department under a Certified Child Life Specialist’s supervision. In this role, I was given the opportunity to shadow a Certified Child Life Specialist as she provided procedural preparation and support, diagnosis education, promoted positive coping skills, and provided therapeutic interventions for patients ages birth to eighteen years old. I independently introduced child life services to patients and families, selected developmentally appropriate normalization items, and planned and implemented various activities while working as a part of an interdisciplinary medical team. At the end of each shift, I completed a journal reflecting on a meaningful interaction with one of the patients we saw. In these reflective journals, I discuss the importance of the individualized child life services provided, assess the patient’s developmental levels, identify coping concerns and stressors associated with hospitalization for the hospitalized child and their family, identify areas for the facilitation of theraputic interventions, and apply an applicable child life theory into practice for each pediatric patient. I also completed other projects such as a patient case study, an in-service on child life, a playroom project, and an article review. After completing my child life practicum, I can better recognize hospitalized children and family’s reactions to stress, illness, and pain and how a Certified Child Life Specialist can support them and help provide positive coping outcomes. I have also gained the skills to work as a part of an interdisciplinary medical team. My child life practicum has set me up to be successful upon entering a child life internship by giving me the experience and skills needed to work with pediatric patients and their families in a medical context.
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View examples of some of my journals by clicking the boxes to the right.
Children's of Alabama Patient Pal-
Summer of 2019, I served as a Patient Pal on the Cardiac Care Unit and Cardiac Intensive Care Unit at Children’s of Alabama. I worked with hospitalized children and their families in this role, providing developmentally appropriate play in the hospital playrooms and at the bedside. I was able to form close bonds with many long-term patients and their siblings and find creative ways to engage them in play while also providing them with safe and age-appropriate choices. Additionally, I provided continuity of care by providing regular feedback to the child life team that I was working alongside. Providing children and their families with a safe place to play helped normalize the hospital environment and provide respite. This experience allowed me to view my course work more tangibly and better identify the stressors that hospitalized children and their families face. My work at Children’s of Alabama helped confirm my passion for serving hospitalized children and their families one day as a Certified Child Life Specialist.
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