by Dana Givens, Child Life Specialist 
and Sallee Chalk, Child Life Specialist

This week's theme for Child Life Month is Family Week! Child Life advocates for patient and family centered care so that care includes the patient, parents, and siblings. Siblings, who can easily be  forgotten about during the patient's hospitalization, play and vital role in the lives our patients. They provide normalization through play and acts as support systems to aid in coping with their environment.

Most people realize that hospitalization can be traumatic for the patient, but it can also be traumatic for their siblings as well. A brother or sister can have feelings of anxiety, fear, guilt, and jealousy. Child Life Services provides siblings with opportunities to express these feelings in a developmentally appropriate manner.  For instance, we may engage the sibling(s) in specific sibling related games and activities.  It is comforting for a sibling to know that there are other brothers and sisters in the same situation they are in.

Child Life strives to provide child friendly education to siblings through a variety of activities such as sibling preparations. The first time a sibling visits the patient can be overwhelming, and that is especially true if they are in one of Le Bonheur Children's critical areas.  Child Life provides sibling preparations to prepare the child to visit the patient, using pictures of the child and medical equipment along with child friendly explanation of their use. Remember that the unknown elements of the visit make it far scarier than if they know what to expect.

Siblings are encouraged to take part in Child Life calendar activities with the patients to encourage normalization and socialization.  Some of theses activities are playrooms, teen room, creative arts, and special events hosted by community organizations.

Siblings are an important part of families, and Le Bonheur Children’s recognizes their  importance during hospitalization.  Outside of the hospital, patients and their siblings interact on a regular basis, and why shouldn't the same thing be true for the hospital.