Sometimes the hardest parts of a healthcare experience are the ones we cannot see. A hospital stay ends. The wound heals. The cannula comes out. Appointments become less frequent and life begins moving forward again. From the outside, a child may appear to have recovered or healed; but sometimes, something has changed. Perhaps your child suddenly becomes distressed when you mention the doctor. Maybe they panic at the sight of a hospital, refuse medication they previously mana

Going back to school doesn’t always mean going back to 'normal'. For many families, returning to school feels like an important milestone after illness, hospitalisation or medical treatment. It can represent recovery, routine, friends, learning and normality. Parents may understandably hope that once their child walks back through the school gates, life will begin to feel a little more like it did before. However, returning to school after a significant healthcare experience

Just because treatment has ended doesn’t mean the journey is over. When a child experiences illness, injury or repeated medical treatment, families often count down to one important milestone: the day they can finally go home. Home represents recovery, normality and the chance to leave hospitals, procedures and appointments behind. But for many families, returning home does not automatically mean life returns to normal. The visible signs of illness may fade, yet many children

Imagine you are in the hospital about to have a painful medical procedure. There are doctors, nurses, other medical staff in the room all wearing scrubs, masks and holding unfamiliar medical equipment. The lights are bright and everyone is talking; trying to reassure you, telling you to, 'be brave’, ‘hold still’ and ‘it’ll be over soon’. The environment in which we expect children to ’comply’ with our medical interventions is often overwhelming and scary. While every comment

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Hospitals and medical settings are wonderful places for both adults and children to receive care. However, they can also be incredibly...

When you envisage the birth of your child and watching them grow, you never picture them in a hospital or medical setting. You don’t...

Imagine you are taken to into an unfamiliar environment. You don’t know any of the people around you and then they ask you to do...

As a Child Life Therapist, much of my role has been in planning for and supporting medical procedures. Medical procedures can include any...

As a Child Life Therapist, I have worked with countless children and families throughout their medical experiences. I have stood by while...

What is empowerment? Medical encounters can be a very challenging experience for some children. They often take place in unfamiliar...

The National Child Traumatic Stress Network describes medical trauma as “a set of psychological and physiological responses of children...

What is a Child Life Therapist? A Child Life Therapist is a healthcare professional specialising in child development with a background...

As adults, we are likely to have built up a range of coping mechanisms to help us in stressful situations. Whether this has been a...

Much research has been done into the importance of developing a therapeutic relationship when working with any client. In fact, a strong...

What is Choice and Control? Supporting children to make choices and have some control in making decisions is a big part of helping them...

As Child Life Therapists, we spend a lot of time normalising medical environments and experiences for children. We understand and utilise...

Having a child is an amazingly rewarding and life enriching experience. We get to receive unconditional love and watch as our little...

Social stories can be used as an incredibly powerful tool to help children understand their experiences and to provide a developmentally...

Having a blood test can be a very challenging experience for your child. It may be their first time round or they may have had previous...