CHEO Child Life program helping kids feel at ease while at the hospital
A hospital experience can be scary for a young child or teen. Whether it’s a serious diagnosis, life changing surgery or the start of chemotherapy, the Child Life Services program at CHEO aims to help kids feel at ease.
For 10-year-old Audrey Sine, it makes dealing with cancer less stressful.
“I like hanging out with them and I like doing crafts,” said Sine. “They're very fun to play with and stuff.”
At CHEO, child life specialists bring the healing power of play through games, crafts and music therapy.
“We are the protectors of childhood,” said Maureen Jones, who works in the Child Life Services department. “We've been given an opportunity to enter a field or an environment where children are often stressed and often exposed to having to build resilience much earlier than the average child, because illness is a journey that can have some significant ups and downs.”
The program has touched thousands of lives over nearly 50 years.
Denise Alcock, first brought the idea to CHEO in the 1970’s.
“It’s wonderful just to see how it's grown and developed, because I always feel what we did was lay a foundation and grow a program. But it has grown magnificently,” said Alcock, who is now retired.
What started as five staff members, has grown to 20, with nearly no wait list for patients.
It’s all funded by community donors and is accessible to any child at the hospital.
“There's no one-size-fits-all, so it's getting to know the child and it's usually through, as I said, assessment, but also building that therapeutic relationship, having an opportunity to have environments like the playroom, which are considered safe spaces,” said Jones.
For the young ones in the program, it’s a chance to feel like a kid again while building resilience for the challenges ahead.
“I love being creative,” said Sine.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Serial sexual offender linked to unsolved 1970s homicides of four Calgary girls, women
An investigation into unsolved historical homicides from the 1970s has linked the deaths of two girls and two young women in and around Calgary to a now-deceased serial offender.
Woman with liver failure rejected for a transplant after medical review highlights alcohol use
For nearly three months, Amanda Huska has been in an Ontario hospital, part of it on life support, because of severe liver failure. Her history of alcohol use is getting in the way of her only potential treatment: a liver transplant.
Dabney Coleman, actor who specialized in curmudgeons, dies at 92
Dabney Coleman, the mustachioed character actor who specialized in smarmy villains like the chauvinist boss in '9 to 5' and the nasty TV director in 'Tootsie,' has died. He was 92.
Information commissioner faces $700K funding shortfall, says system is 'overwhelmed'
Canada's information commissioner says her office is facing a $700,000 funding shortfall that could impact its ability to investigate complaints about government transparency and accountability.
BREAKING Craig Berube named as next head coach of Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs have named Craig Berube as their new head coach.
Backlash over NFL player Harrison Butker's commencement speech has reached a new level
The NFL is distancing itself from controversial comments by Kansas City Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker during a recent commencement address.
B.C. man 'attacked suddenly' by adult grizzly near Alberta boundary: RCMP
A B.C. man is recovering from multiple injuries after he was "attacked suddenly" by an adult grizzly bear near Elkford Thursday afternoon.
Australia's richest woman seeks removal of her portrait from exhibition
Art is subjective. And while many artists long to share their work with the world, there's no guarantee that the audience will understand it, or even like it.
Person charged in random assault on actor Steve Buscemi in New York
A person wanted in connection with the random assault on actor Steve Buscemi on a New York City street earlier this month was taken into custody Friday, police said.