Dell Children’s Omits Many Child Life Assistant Positions

By THC Staff | February 15, 2017

 

On their website, Dell Children’s Medical Center describes Child Life Services as vital to maintaining a calm and positive atmosphere for the kids and families who stay at the hospital. A Child Life Service assistant works closely with all of the hospital staff to provide the best care possible. They play with the children at their bedside or playrooms, teach them how to maintain their anxiety and stay optimistic, and explain medical procedures in age-appropriate ways.

Sadly, many of the Child Life employees at Dell Children’s were let go, according to KXAN. Deb Brown, vice president of Patient Care Services and chief operating officer at Dell Children’s, explained, “We compared ourselves to 36 other top children’s hospitals in the country, and what we found was that we had about four times as many child life assistants. We said how can we reorganize the department, still provide the high-quality service to the children and their families, without disrupting anything.”

Since the Child Life Specialists have Master’s degrees and provide therapy, their jobs are safe. But Child Life Assistants normally hold Bachelor’s degrees, and the hospital found they could replace many of the assistants with volunteers to save on costs. They haven’t said how many they need to let go.