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Making Explicit the Implicit: Child Life Specialists Talk About Their Assessment Process

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Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore the assessment process of child life specialists. During semi-structured interviews, twelve respondents talked about the experience of meeting a child and family for the first time, revealing aspects of the assessment process that developed in their ongoing interactions. The respondents spoke of building and maintaining relationships with children and families as a dynamic practice that occurred simultaneously with the gathering and maintaining of information. The how to of the assessment process, presented within the framework of main study questions, integrates declarative and procedural knowledge to reveal the humanistic aspects of child life practice.

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Acknowledgment

This study was initiated as the undergraduate Honours Thesis research of Jessica Fralic

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Child and Youth Study, Mount Saint Vincent University, Halifax, NS, B3M 2J6, Canada

    Joan C. Turner & Jessica Fralic

Authors
  1. Joan C. Turner
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  2. Jessica Fralic
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Joan C. Turner.

Appendix

Appendix

Interview Questions

Can you describe for me your range of experiences working as a child life specialist in a pediatric setting?

How many years have you been working as a child life specialist?

What background (education and or/experiences) prepared you to work in the field of child life?

Thinking about your background, in what ways do you draw on the foundation of knowledge and experiences as you interact with children and families in the health care setting?

Would you explain the general process you practice when meeting a child and family for the first time?

  1. a.

    How do you introduce your role?

  2. b.

    What questions might you ask during this time?

  3. c.

    What observations might you make during this time?

  4. d.

    Do you generally have any materials with you that you use either to gain rapport with the child/family or for informational purposes?

  5. e.

    Are there any typical plans that you make for a subsequent visit with the child/family at this time of the initial meeting?

Following the initial meeting, does your program have any specific policies or practices related to documentation and/or follow-up assessment that you plan for?

Now, thinking about subsequent contact with a child/family, are there any particular areas or factors that you focus on in order to assess the needs of a child/family?

If you had to describe what guides you in prioritizing the services/interventions that you provide to children/families, what would you include in your statement?

Health care relationships can be short or long in duration depending on the setting and circumstances. In the case of short term contact the assessment process must be done quite quickly. Please describe how you conduct a brief assessment?

In the case of longer relationships, please describe how the assessment process is maintained over time.

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Turner, J.C., Fralic, J. Making Explicit the Implicit: Child Life Specialists Talk About Their Assessment Process. Child Youth Care Forum 38, 39–54 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-009-9066-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10566-009-9066-x

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