For young children, the hospital can be a scary place. When children and families are facing medical trauma, such as an impending surgery or the effects a chronic illness, child life specialists use play to help children express their thoughts and feelings, process information, move away from danger and toward safety, and navigate all of the complex experiences that unfold in a medical setting.
On March 9, the Bank Street Library hosted the “Resiliency of the Child and the Power of Play” Library Salon featuring a panel discussion with the faculty and alumni authors of the new Handbook of Medical Play Therapy and Child Life: Interventions in Clinical and Medical Settings.
The panel of faculty and alumni experts included Patricia Weiner, one of the founders of the Child Life Program at Bank Street and Educational Consultant for Making Headway; Deborah Vilas, GSE ’93, Faculty Advisor and Instructor at Bank Street; Jon Luongo, GSE ‘05, Child Life Specialist at Maimonides Medical Center; and Suzanna Peterson Paisley, GSE ’09, Child Life Specialist at Children’s Hospital Colorado. The book’s editor, Lawrence C. Rubin, Professor of Counselor Education at St. Thomas University in Miami, Florida, joined the panel by video conference. The discussion was moderated by Child Life Program Director Troy Pinkney.
Each panelist shared case studies from their experiences in the field and discussed the challenges and successes of using play therapy with children and families who are experiencing medical trauma. Weiner discussed how parents can advocate for their children while addressing chronic illness and a child’s experience with healthcare settings, while Vilas spoke about “loose parts,” a play technique where, used in the context of a child life intervention, children can learn about their health and medical treatment while playing and creating art from common objects. Demonstrating techniques borrowed from the Makers Movement, Luongo displayed DIY toys and devices built from Legos and showing the impact of a toilet-paper-tube-and-rubber-glove horn he created to help a child overcome the fear of a pulmonary function test.
Kristin Freda, Library Director and host of the event, said, “The panel demonstrated how child life practitioners positively impact the lives of families and children using play techniques. When a child needs hospitalization or frightening medical procedures, parents are there to provide a safe emotional space, but it’s the child life specialist who helps them navigate the fear and find expression for their feelings. ”
After the presentations, the audience of faculty, alumni, and students asked questions about a range of topics and received experience-based responses on how the panelists helped children and families to navigate health concerns using play.
Pinkney said, “We hear a lot about play in school, but it’s really important that we use it during difficult times. Child life specialists and play therapists use play to support kids and families when they need it most.”
The new handbook, the first of its kind to combine play therapy with child life techniques, was published by Routledge in late 2017.
Library Salons are a series of informal lectures and group discussions held after hours on Friday evenings. Salon #16 will be held on April 13 at 5:00 PM and will feature a conversation with educator, activist, and author Jonathan Silin about his new book, Early Childhood, Aging, and the Life Cycle: Mapping Common Ground. The memoir explores the process of aging and illuminates some of the challenges linking young and old in a common world.