In the early days of the pandemic, my daughter, who had struggled with a respiratory infection the previous winter, began to wheeze again. She started waking in the middle of the night, needing nebulizer treatments. Panic set in, and my first thought was COVID-19. Her pediatrician promptly prescribed a COVID test.
During those initial weeks, obtaining a COVID test meant enduring a nasal swab by someone clad in a hazmat suit reaching through the car window. My daughter gritted her teeth and endured the swabbing. Thankfully, her result was negative, but the experience left a mark; she now recounts the “swab that touched her brain” in vivid detail.
While she emerged with just a story, for many children, such experiences can foster a long-lasting fear and distrust of medical environments. This is where Child Life Specialists step in, and the Emotional Safety Initiative represents their efforts to mitigate these fears.
In a conversation with Laura James, President of the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP), we explored the Emotional Safety Initiative and a recently published paper advocating for the prioritization of children’s emotional safety alongside their physical safety in medical settings.
What Is The Emotional Safety Initiative?
The Emotional Safety Initiative advocates for emotional safety to be considered equally essential as physical safety in pediatric medical experiences. Emotional safety is defined as an intentional, interdisciplinary practice aimed at fostering resilience, healing, and trust for pediatric patients and their families during medical experiences. The goal is to provide a supportive and stress-free environment for patients and their families.
The Emotional Safety Initiative’s Four-Part Framework
The framework of the Emotional Safety Initiative consists of four key elements:
- Screening and Assessment: This component seeks to understand the patients and their families better, thereby creating a supportive system. Assessments can take place before a planned admission or in urgent situations to gauge families’ experiences and challenges.
- Intervention: This aspect focuses on ensuring the child’s comfort and understanding their past medical encounters. The aim here is to identify what has been difficult in the past to avoid replicating those experiences.
- Environment: According to James, everything in a medical setting can be intimidating for children, from adult attire to the size of the equipment. This element encourages healthcare providers to create a child-friendly atmosphere. For instance, James mentioned her hospital’s new building plans, which consider how to position parent beds to best support the child’s experience.
- Education, Training, and Communication: This prong emphasizes that everyone involved in a patient’s care, from security personnel to medical staff, plays a role in emotional safety. The focus here is on educating all team members about emotional safety standards.
Emotional Safety Is Equally Important as Physical Safety
According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, 80% of pediatric patients and their families experience some level of traumatic stress following treatment for serious illnesses or injuries. Short-term effects can include developmental setbacks and sleep disturbances, while long-term impacts may be even more severe. Children who undergo distressing medical experiences may grow up to be hesitant about seeking healthcare.
James shared a poignant story about a relative who developed an illness at a young age. During her numerous surgeries and a year-long hospitalization, emotional safety was not prioritized, and parents were only allowed limited visitation. As an adult, she developed a profound fear of medical settings and ultimately passed away from a treatable condition.
While this is an extreme case, it underscores the lasting fears that motivate Child Life Professionals to advocate for emotional safety.
Supporting Emotional Safety as Parents
To bolster emotional safety, parents must recognize the potential impact of medical procedures. Even seemingly minor procedures, like a nasal swab, can have lasting effects. James urges parents to ask questions and be informed about their options, asserting that they are the experts on their own children.
For further guidance, parents can refer to the Emotional Safety Initiative website, which offers resources to help navigate emotionally safe care. Ultimately, the mission of the Emotional Safety Initiative is to help healthcare providers and parents understand that ensuring emotional safety positively influences both the physical and mental well-being of children and families.
Emotional safety plays a crucial role in shaping a child’s future relationship with healthcare, making it an essential aspect of pediatric care.
For related insights, check out this other blog post and learn more about emotional safety in healthcare settings. Additionally, for authoritative information on this topic, visit this resource. For statistics on infertility and pregnancy, refer to the CDC’s excellent resource.
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Summary
The Emotional Safety Initiative is designed to ensure that emotional safety is prioritized alongside physical safety in pediatric medical care. By focusing on understanding patient experiences, providing interventions for comfort, creating a friendly environment, and educating care teams, the initiative aims to reduce trauma and foster trust in healthcare settings for children and their families. Parents play a vital role in supporting their child’s emotional safety by being informed and proactive.