SUMMARY:

Provides expert psychosocial, emotional, developmental, and educational support to pediatric patients and their families. Prepares patients for medical experiences and develops individualized treatment plans to reduce the stress and trauma associated with illness, injury, diagnosis, and hospitalization. Promotes coping, resilience, and wellbeing, and helps normalize the hospital environment to support growth and development. Collaborates with members of the interdisciplinary healthcare team, and orients and supervises pediatric volunteers and child life interns.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION: Bachelor’s degree (B.A. or B.S.) from four-year College or University required, preferably in one of the following fields of study: Psychology, Human Development and Family Studies, child life studies.

EXPERIENCE: Two (2) years of child life specialist experience. 

LICENSURE OR CERTIFICATION: Child Life Specialist Certification required.  Current Basic Life Support (BLS) certification required.

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

·         Knowledge of theories of human growth and development, family systems, and cultural backgrounds.

·         Excellent communication, interpersonal, and listening skills; ability to explain complex medical/treatment information in an age-appropriate manner.

·         Strong organization, planning, and problem-solving skills; ability to manage multiple patients or tasks simultaneously.

·         Emotional resilience and ability to handle the stress of working with children and families in crisis, illness, and death.

·         Ability to adapt interventions to developmental level, family systems, and cultural considerations.

·         Creativity and resourcefulness in designing play, educational materials, and coping interventions.

·         Competence with documentation, use of hospital information systems, and ability to evaluate outcomes.

·         Ability to speak effectively before groups of customers or employees of organization.

·         Ability to add, subtract, multiply, and divide using whole numbers, common fractions, and decimals.

·         Ability to solve practical problems and deal with a variety of concrete variables in situations where only limited standardization exists.

·         Ability to interpret a variety of instructions furnished in written, oral, diagram, or schedule form.