March Is Child Life Month

A Message From Bailey Kasten, CAE,
ACLP COO & Interim CEO

Learn more about the Emotional Safety Initiative

Request a Letter to Your Hospital Administrator and/or Department Head

Back by popular demand, ACLP Interim CEO & COO Bailey Kasten, CAE will send an email or letter to your hospital administrator and/or department head that expresses her gratitude for their support of child life services and includes information about how healthcare leaders can celebrate Child Life Month. You may select a traditional hospital or community-based message. The deadline to request an email or letter is March 15. Request your letter.

Like most child life programs, the Child Life Services Department at Sidra Medicine in Doha, Qatar typically celebrates Child Life Month by not just acknowledging the work of their team, but by focusing outward through education about child life services, psychosocial support opportunities, and the value of emotional safety for children in the health care setting. They sponsor education tables, special events, speak at Grand Rounds, etc. But this year, with the realities of the past year with the pandemic, they decided to do things a little differently. They shifted their focus inward and spent the entire month heaping appreciation in varied ways over their team members. It has been such a challenging year for caregivers with increased psychosocial vulnerabilities impacting their patients, impacting their personal lives, and the weight and worry carried by all. In addition to these challenges, this team is 100% expats in Qatar so they have faced the added stressor of separation from their families by oceans and continents in this time when you naturally want to draw nearer. So, the department jumped to ensure each team member feels valued for their hard work and enduring dedication to patients, families, and their hospital. The child life team celebrated Child Life Month by lifting each other up through encouragement and celebration of their accomplishments. They partnered with their Allied Health Director, Chief Nursing Officer, and CEO in events throughout the month to allow their team time with these leaders to be heard as well as appreciated.  Thursdays became “Treat Yo’self” days with snacks and surprises for the team. Throughout the month, team members wrote “cheers” for their peers to be displayed at the Child Life Month celebration.  At the socially distanced celebration, each team member received a fun, customized award voted on by their peers, enjoyed a slideshow encompassing the span of the program in Qatar and big prizes were given in a drawing. Leadership even designed and gave each team member Child Life - Qatar t-shirts!  Hospital-wide communication about services was sent via email, posted on the internal portal page, and an article was written for the Allied Health newsletter. March was a fun month celebrating the “joy bringers of the hospital” (as they like to call their CL team members) and sharing that joy and their expertise with the larger organization.

Child Life Services Team - Sidra Medicine in Doha, Qatar

Cheers for Peers Display

Eriko Miura, CCLS at St. Luke's International Hospital in Tokyo, Japan, and her colleagues have always wanted to participate in celebrating the Child Life Month in Japan, but haven't been able to make it happen. This year, they were determined! Their plan was to create a video to encourage all of the other CCLSs in Japan to participate in Child Life Month, "to simply have fun... and have a chance to all come together as one." Mission accomplished, Eriko!

The Volunteer Selection Process Begins March 1!

Be a part of shaping the future of child life by becoming a volunteer. This year marks the beginning of new strategic planning. It is a wonderful opportunity to be in a leadership role during this important planning year. Learn more.

Submitting a Volunteer Interest Form (VIF) is the first step of the volunteer selection process. ACLP members can apply for up to 3 committees/task forces as well as the Membership Advisory Group and/or Social Ambassadors. Learn more about ACLP volunteer committees and working groups.

The VIF process closes on March 22. All volunteers who are accepted will be notified the week of April 26.

Download the VIF Guide