The Community Hospice Child Life Specialist coordinates and provides therapeutic activities and opportunities for children up to age 21 of Community Hospice patients as they deal with the end of live care of their parent or grandparent. Child life interventions will be provided in Community Hospice Centers for Caring, partner long-term care facilities, and Community Hospice patients’ homes. The position supports medical, nursing, pastoral, and psychosocial providers working with the families.
Provides memory making, legacy building activities, and anticipatory grief/bereavement support to child/children impacted by their loved one’s terminal illness and/or potential death.
Creates child-life focused education to parents/caregivers on topics that include coping strategies, memory making, behavioral management appropriate to the child’s development, behavioral management, memory making, and coping strategies.
Implements therapeutic play activities to facilitate expression of feelings and coping skills for the impacted child(ren).
Collaborates with the interdisciplinary team to screen for patients/child(ren) most appropriate for child life interventions.
Develops individual plans of care based on assessment of the child’s need, development, temperament, coping style, medical situation, and available support.
Provides patients and families opportunities for medical play, memory making, distraction, activity modification, coping, and other child life-associated activities, to support the child and family and, as appropriate, to normalize the situation.
Collaborates with Community Hospice social worker/psychosocial specialist on patient/family psychosocial needs to ensure interventions specific to child life focus.
Helps parents to understand their child’s response to child life interventions; assist child(ren) in better understanding their loved one’s illness/condition.
Participates in grief camp programs as needed.
May require occasional evening or weekend work when needed
Recruiter Contact: Derek Guffin, derek.guffin@aliviacare.com Quick Apply: Indeed or via company page
** About Community Hospice & Palliative Care Established in 1979, Community Hospice & Palliative Care is an innovative national leader in palliative and hospice care, as well as providing programs and services to meet the diverse needs of the communities it serves. During its 42-year history, through the support of more than 1,000 employees and 1,000 volunteers, the organization helps approximately 1,600 patients per day to live better with advanced illness – at home, in long-term care and assisted living facilities, in hospitals and at its 10 inpatient care centers.
Education/Experience: Any combination of education and experience that would provide required skills and knowledge for successful performance would be qualifying. Typical qualifications would be equivalent to:
Bachelor’s degree in Child Development or Therapeutic Recreation
Certified Child Life Specialist by the Child Life Certifying Commission under the Child Life Council
Child development/child life or therapeutic recreation experience
Established in 1979, Community Hospice & Palliative Care is an innovative national leader in palliative and hospice care, as well as providing programs and services to meet the diverse needs of the communities it serves. During its 42-year history, Community Hospice & Palliative Care has served nearly 220,000 adults and children in Florida counties including Baker, Clay, Duval, Nassau and St. Johns counties, and recently expanded its service area to include 11 counties in north-central Florida. This new service area allows us to serve hospice patients in Gainesville, Lake City, Palatka and their surrounding communities.
Through the support of more than 950 employees and 1,000 volunteers, the organization helps approximately 1,500 patients per day to live better with advanced illness – at home, in long-term care and assisted living facilities, in hospitals and at its 10 inpatient care centers. The organization is committed to improving the quality of life for patients and their families and to be the compassionate guide for end-of-life care in our communities. No one is ever denied care due to an inability to pay.
