The Child Life Program
The Child Life Program
...An environment
...A staff
...Materials
where all feelings are allowed and accepted
as children attempt to master their hospital experience.
of caring professionals trained to help
children and their families cope with illness
through which hospitalized children explore,
create, and learn.
A visit to the hospital can be traumatic for any youngster. The Child Life Program at New York Presbyterian Hospital alleviates fears and anxieties about the hospital experience by offering activities geared to the social, emotional and educational needs of the young patients. Children are given an opportunity to continue normal development as well as to recuperate from the emotional and physical effects of illness.
The Child Life staff consists of professionals trained to help children and families cope with the hospital experience. Therapists use their expertise in early Childhood Education, Creative Art Therapy, Special Education and Recreation Therapy to create a supportive environment that allows patients to retain their self-esteem and independence.
The program serves as an interpretive link between the world of the child and the often overwhelming adult world of the hospital. Essential life experiences, such as play, school and entertainment, help children understand their unfamiliar situation.
The Child Life Playroom is located on the Greenberg 6-N Pediatric Unit. We offer daily play therapy sessions for the children on the unit, as well as in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. If children are confined to a bed, a child life therapist will work closely at bedside, assessing needs for appropriate activities.
The playroom is divided into separate areas for infants, toddlers, pre-schoolers and older children Designed to offer the opportunity for either solitary play or peer companionship, the playroom provides freedom from medical procedures and a more natural setting in which to recuperate.
Inpatient child life services are available six days a week, from 9:00 AM to 9:00 PM Monday through Friday and Saturdays from 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM. Child Life Staff members include: Jean Sweeney, MA, Child Life Coordinator, Virginia Neuhalfen, CB Bucknor, Yolanda Greenidge and Kara Odishvili.