Child Life Specialist I

University of Maryland Medical System; Baltimore (MD); On-site; USD 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive benefits package

Supportive work environment

Professional development opportunities

Job summary

A leading academic medical center in Baltimore is seeking a Child Life Specialist for its Pediatric Emergency Department. This role involves providing developmental and psychosocial support to children facing health challenges. Responsibilities include assessing children's needs, implementing therapeutic interventions, and collaborating with healthcare teams to promote resilience. A Bachelor's Degree in child life or a related field and completion of a child life internship are required. The position offers the opportunity to make a significant impact in a vibrant healthcare setting.

Qualifications

• Experience in child development or a related field.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced healthcare environment.
• Knowledge of developmental psychology.

Responsibilities

• Assess social, emotional, and educational needs of children.
• Implement therapeutic play and interventions to ease distress.
• Collaborate with healthcare professionals to enhance patient care.
• Advocate for children’s needs within the healthcare system.

Skills

Developmental assessment

Therapeutic interventions

Collaborative teamwork

Crisis intervention

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in child life or related discipline

Completion of child life internship

Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) Certification

Job description

Company Description: Renowned as the academic flagship of the University of Maryland Medical System, our Magnet®-designated facility is a nationally recognized, academic medical center with opportunities across the continuum of care. Come join UMMC and discover the atmosphere where talents and ideas come together to enhance patient care and advance the science of nursing. Located in downtown Baltimore near the Inner Harbor and Camden Yards, you won’t find a more vibrant place to work!

General Summary

This position covers our Pediatric Emergency Department. The Child Life Specialist is responsible for providing optimal developmental, psychosocial, and therapeutic support in the healthcare setting to meet the social, emotional, physical and educational needs of children between the ages of birth and eighteen years of age. Assesses children’s developmental and coping needs and implements developmentally appropriate therapeutic interventions such as play, medical play, psychological preparation, and rehearsed coping to minimize distress associated with the health care environment and to foster resiliency. Supervised by the child life manager and supervises and evaluates the work of volunteers and student interns. Collaborates with other members of the health care team to enhance quality of care and acts as an advocate and resource regarding issues such as child development and children’s response to hospitalization.

Principal Responsibilities and Tasks

Patient And Family Care

• Assesses the developmental and psychosocial needs of infants, children, youth, and families.
• Effectively utilizes information from the child and family and observations of development, coping styles, play, and affect as a basis for assessment and to formulate an individualized plan of care.
• Demonstrates ability to be flexible with chosen intervention strategies to adapt to the needs of the child and family.
• Fosters safe, therapeutic and healing environments to minimize stress, maximize coping, and facilitate normative development in the healthcare setting.
• Differentiates between therapeutic and non-therapeutic relationships and maintain therapeutic boundaries with infants, children, youth and families.
• Initiates collaboration with the healthcare team to provide developmentally appropriate procedural preparation and education to children and families.
• Utilizes educational materials and contributes to the developmental of new educational materials/methods of teaching for both child/family and staff.
• Identifies child and family learning needs and any barriers to teaching. Uses resources available to adapt to child/family needs. Communicates needs to healthcare team.
• Facilitates planning, rehearsal, implementation, and evaluation of coping strategies to facilitate adaptive coping.
• Utilizes appropriate non-pharmacological pain management strategies.
• Facilitates developmentally appropriate play as a primary tool to decrease distress, provide enjoyment and comfort, enhance mastery, and promote healing.
• Facilitates supportive education and therapeutic interventions to address death and dying.
• Creates concise, objective and accurate clinical notes, documenting information pertinent to the plan of care and consistent with program documentation guidelines.
• Promotes patient and family centered care.
• Supports the central role of the family, valuing strengths and needs in implementing child life services.
• Acts as a resource and educates families regarding children’s response to healthcare environments, coping, chronic illness and death and dying.
• Empowers and supports patients and families to effectively self-advocate, and advocates on behalf of those who cannot do so.
• Incorporates knowledge of cultural diversity and competence when providing services to children and families.

Teamwork And Collaboration

• Functions as an active, contributing member of the child life department, hospital and health care team.
• Effectively communicates child/family needs and collaborates with members of the interdisciplinary team.
• Utilizes professional communication that is proactive and respectful to establish and maintain effective relationships with coworkers.
• Participates in the development and execution of program goals.
• Participates in and practices continuous quality improvement by identifying areas for improvement, offering suggestions for change, and actively engaging in the improvement process.
• Assists in facilitating effective and developmentally appropriate community groups and program events.
• Acts as a resource for the psychosocial needs of children and advocates for these needs within the healthcare environment and the community.
• Assists children throughout the hospital in times of family stress. Seeks support from senior Child Life Specialists for more acute and complex consults.
• Models developmentally appropriate care of infants, children, and youth to build capacity in medical staff, volunteers, and child life placement students.
• Effectively represents child life to internal and external customers (i.e., media, donors, and donor relations).
• Assists senior Child Life Specialists in developing and providing educational in-services for the healthcare team throughout the medical center.

Program Governance

• Maintains resources for optimum utilization.
• Effectively utilizes and maintains equipment and supplies consistent with program policies and procedures, infection control protocols, and child life budget parameters.
• Assists in managing donations.
• Follows established processes and procedures for optimal service delivery.
• Prioritizes and organizes workload for accurate and timely outcomes.
• Assists in orientating and training new staff, child life students and volunteers.
• Provides orientation to the setting and policies and procedures of the work environment.
• Acts as a mentor while providing a safe learning environment.
• Provides regular feedback in a constructive manner.
• Communicates expectations and roles clearly and concisely.

Professional Development

• Maintains professional standards of practice.
• Identifies own learning needs and seeks out opportunities for personal educational development to stay current with professional practice.
• Takes responsibility to actively participate in professional supervision.

Knowledge, Skills And Abilities

• Incumbents will be required to work alternate holidays and may be required to work weekends.
• Work requires independent lifting of up to 25 pounds to position and/or assist patients with ambulation. Work requires standing and/or walking up to 100% of the time.
• There is potential for regular exposure to patients possessing infectious diseases in the work environment, requiring knowledge and observance of “Universal Precautions.”

Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s Degree in child life, child development, or closely related discipline required.
• Completion of a child life internship under the supervision of a certified child life specialist is required.
• Certified Child Life Specialist (CCLS) Certification must be obtained within 1 year of hire. Must meet requirements set forth for certification by the Child Life Certifying Commission.
• Membership in Child Life Council and other professional affiliations is encouraged.
• Current CPR training, or obtain CPR training within 3 months.

Additional Information

• All your information will be kept confidential according to EEO guidelines.
• Review the 2025-2026 UMMS Benefits Guide.

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