Child Life Specialist

Community Hospice & Palliative Care • Jacksonville, FL

1d

About The Position

The Community Hospice Child Life Specialist coordinates and provides therapeutic activities and opportunities for children up to age 21 whose parent or custodial grandparent or family member is a Community Hospice patient facing impending death. Interventions are provided at Community Hospice Centers for Caring, partner long-term care facilities, and patients’ homes. The role supports medical, nursing, pastoral, and social work/psychosocial providers working with families.

The specialist assesses children’s needs and develops individualized plans of care, provides therapeutic play and child-life-focused education, and collaborates with patients, families, caregivers, and the interdisciplinary team. The role also contributes to care planning, remembrance events, support groups, and education for staff and the community. Occasional evening and weekend work is required.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Child Development or Therapeutic Recreation.
• Experience in child development, child life, or therapeutic recreation.
• Certification as a Child Life Specialist by the Child Life Certifying Commission under the Child Life Council.
• Current State of Florida driver’s license with a driving record acceptable to Community Hospice’s insurance carrier.
• Medical clearance for communicable diseases and current immunizations before participant contact.
• Knowledge of principles and practices of child development and therapeutic recreation.
• Knowledge of family relationship dynamics and family systems.
• Effective communication and listening skills.
• Ability to work within an interdisciplinary team.

Responsibilities

• Provide memory-making, legacy-building, anticipatory grief, and bereavement support to children affected by a loved one’s terminal illness or potential death.
• Educate parents and caregivers about child-life topics, including coping strategies, memory making, and developmentally appropriate behavioral management.
• Provide therapeutic play activities that help children express feelings and develop coping skills.
• Collaborate with the interdisciplinary team to identify patients appropriate for child life interventions.
• Assess children’s needs and develop individualized plans of care that consider development, temperament, coping style, medical situation, and available support.
• Provide medical play, memory making, distraction, activity modification, coping support, and other child-life activities to support children and families and, as appropriate, normalize the situation.
• Collaborate with Community Hospice social work/psychosocial specialists regarding patient and family psychosocial needs and child-life-focused interventions.
• Maintain ongoing communication with the team about children’s responses to interventions and relevant observations.
• Help parents understand their child’s responses to child life interventions and help children better understand their loved one’s illness or condition.
• Educate patients, families, and staff on child-life-appropriate coping and support techniques.
• Develop, facilitate, and/or accomplish skills and programs reflecting current child life practice.
• Contribute to collaborative patient care plans by participating in weekly interdisciplinary team meetings as appropriate and able.
• Participate in professional groups and advisory boards related to pediatric and adult hospice and palliative care.
• Participate in planning and implementation of organizational remembrance events and support groups.
• Provide education to staff and the community on child-life-related topics.
• Maintain professional certification.
• Demonstrate tact, sensitivity, professional attitudes, and judgment in interactions with patients, families, and colleagues.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time