Being
in the hospital is difficult at any age, but it’s especially trying for kids.
However, youngsters at CoxHealth – 11,500 in 2015 alone -- have some special
people who help make the experience better. Those people are Child Life
Specialists, and this month they’re celebrating their 25th year of serving kids
at CoxHealth.
“By
assisting children and their families in understanding hospitalization,
diagnoses and procedures, Child Life helps to empower children in the
healthcare environment,” says Rana Post, Child Life Coordinator at CoxHealth.
“As we look towards the future and the ever-evolving needs of Pediatric
patients and their families, Child Life will continue to be an essential part
of the health care experience by helping provide for children’s psychosocial
needs and facilitating play during hospitalization.”
In
everyday terms, some of those efforts translate to preparing children for
produces by explaining them step-by-step in kid-friendly terms, allowing
children to touch and manipulate medical equipment prior to procedures to
decrease anxiety, organizing special visitors and events, and distracting
patients during procedures.
In
1991, CoxHealth began with one Child Life Specialist who served kids in the
Pediatric Unit and the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Today, the program has
expanded to three full-time employees who aid kids in locations such as Same
Day Surgery at Cox South, the CoxHealth Surgery Center, the Neonatal Intensive
Care Unit, the Emergency Department, Pediatric Urgent Care, Pre-Admissions,
Radiology and Pediatric Sedation. The specialists also serve any adult patients
in the hospital who are developmentally delayed.
Photo:
From left to right are CoxHealth Child Life Specialists Amanda Eddington,
Morgan Conrad and Rana Post.
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