How to communicate with children, according to Health Play Specialists in the United Kingdom: A qualitative study

Abstract

Child-focused anthropologists have described how sick-children utilise ‘Play’ and ‘imagination’ as a tool to cope and make-meaning of their illness-experiences. Health Play Specialists (HPS) are professional healthcare-workers who advocate for children and use ‘playful’ methods to improve communication with, and the lived-experience of, children in hospital. The research aim of this study was to identify strategies and methods employed by HPS to effectively communicate with children. The research methodology comprises interviews conducted with HPS and utilises a qualitative data-analysis model. The main findings include: the importance of ‘Play’ for chronically ill children; how HPS utilise material-resources to explain illnesses and procedures to children; structural challenges HPS face as a profession; and applicable advice for paediatric-healthcare-workers. This research highlights the importance of introducing a ‘pro-play’ mindset to healthcare-workers, in order to facilitate children’s basic human-rights in hospital. It seeks to advocate for the potential of ‘Play’ and the value of HPS within paediatric-healthcare-settings, as well as the need for further recognition and multidisciplinary research in this area.

Evidence about playing in the hospital from the perspective of the child's family: integrative review / Evidências acerca do brincar no hospital na perspectiva do familiar da criança: revisão integrativa

“…2 In addition, it allows for the compression of situations that are atypical and threatening, such as invasive procedures. 3 The aforementioned data corroborates a study carried out with children who were hospitalized and under precaution. In this study, the results showed that when they play, they feel free and happy.…”

“…Thus, given that the literature on the subject of play in the context of children's hospitalization mostly deals with children, [1][2][3][4] this research, which focuses on the family, can help health professionals to promote actions that include family members in the co-participation of play for children in hospital.…”