Child Life Program Coordinator

About IHI

At Innovative Hematology, Inc. (IHI), we offer a future where people with rare blood disorders flourish. Our experts provide the highest quality comprehensive services and holistic care to patients with bleeding, clotting, and other hematologic disorders, and to their families.

What You Will Do

As the Child Life Program Coordinator, you will collaborate with the health care team to provide social, emotional, and developmental support to pediatric and adolescent patients in the inpatient and outpatient settings. The primary goal is to provide age-appropriate education, help reduce patient stress and anxiety, and build and maintain positive relationships with patients, their families, and organizations or groups that support pediatric and adolescent patients and programs. In addition to direct Child Life responsibilities, the Child Life Program Coordinator will play a crucial role in expanding the program’s scope, reach, and impact.

The Opportunity

• Develop care plans to reduce the fear and anxiety a child experiences during medical visits while building ongoing trusting relationships.
• Support children, families, and staff by implementing and leading specialized services to best meet the individual child’s needs, including medical play, procedure preparation, support, distraction, and coping mechanisms during medical events.
• Work collaboratively with and function as an effective member of the child life and multidisciplinary healthcare teams to share the concerns and needs of individual children and coordinate their care.
• Guide children, staff, and family through coping strategies during medical procedures.
• Educate and prepare patients and their families for medical procedures, disease processes, and mastery of the healthcare environment using appropriate and therapeutic play activities as treatment tools to reduce stress and trauma.
• Prepare and present educational opportunities to healthcare team members and community partners.
• Support growth, planning, program development, and coordination of the CLS program
• Collaborate with appropriate staff in the transition of patients from the pediatric to adult clinic. 
• Complete home or offsite visits (including but not limited to Outreach Clinics) to provide assessment, interventions, and education.
• Collaborate with appropriate supervisors and managers to ensure adequate CLS coverage at outreach events.
• Provide key planning and logistical support for organizational supported camps and other assigned programs.

This position requires occasional travel to patient homes, schools, and outreach clinics outside the IHI. 

Performance Requirements:

Knowledge:

1. Knowledge of child development, child life theory, and evidence-based practice, as well as childhood trauma and grief and therapeutic interventions.
2. Knowledge of the social determinants of health and their impact on patients and families.
3. Knowledge of effective communication strategies for working with children.

Skills:

1. Motivational leadership skills.
2. De-escalation and resolving conflict.
3. Skilled in Trauma Informed Care approach.
4. Active and reflective listening.
5. Excellent interpersonal, documentation, and communication skills, including adjusting vocabulary to match the child’s age and comprehension level and using positive reinforcement.
6. Outstanding organizational and time management with the ability to prioritize competing demands.
7. Public speaking and educational presentations.

Abilities:

1. Ability to work as part of an interdisciplinary team.
2. Ability to establish safe environments for patients to express thoughts and emotions.
3. Ability to build trust by understanding patient and family needs, providing accommodation, and assessing patients’ needs to develop age-appropriate support strategies.
4. Ability to work with culturally and neuro-diverse patients and families.
5. Ability to develop age-appropriate care strategies to minimize trauma and increase understanding of medical diagnosis through treatment plans using therapeutic play, education, preparation, and activities that promote growth and development alongside the patient’s care team.

• Minimum bachelor’s degree in Child Life, Child Development or related field required.
• Certified Child Life Specialist required.

• Minimum 5 years of related experience required.
• A Valid driver's license and automobile insurance is required.
• All IHI employees are expected to enable multi-factor authentication via their personal smartphone or smart device to access IHI systems as a requirement of their role.  

Why join our team?

IHI is a not-for-profit program based in Indianapolis and offers a competitive salary and benefit package.

IHI is the only federally designated comprehensive hemophilia program in Indiana and serves the entire state through services available in Indianapolis and at outreach clinics.

IHI is a leader in hemophilia care, education and clinical research and has a dedicated on-site multidisciplinary staff to ensure availability of a wide range of required services.

IHI participates in national and international clinical research, including new infusion products and therapies, investigation of long-term outcomes, and the impact of associated conditions. The IHI research program provides patients access to new therapies, and an opportunity to improve care. Our center has more than 50 clinical research projects involving bleeding disorders, sickle cell disease, thrombosis and more.

Innovative Hematology, Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer.