14521 Helping Young Children Thrive in Hospital Settings

Course overview

Focuses on how to help young children thrive in hospital settings, including signs of hospital-related stress, how to help children and their caregivers manage that stress, and how to manage behavior problems within the hospital setting. Many children will require medical care in a hospital setting at some point during their childhood, whether it be for an inpatient hospital stay or for an outpatient procedure. Healthcare environments can be very stressful for children due to multiple factors, such as unfamiliar faces, medical equipment, pain, or fear of being alone. In addition, hospitalization also means that the childs daily routine and activities will be interrupted, and they may feel a loss of control during critical developmental stages of childhood. Nurses and other healthcare workers are in an optimal position to communicate with and instill a sense of security and normalcy into hospitalized children and their family members, minimizing the negative impacts that hospitalization may have. This program discusses hospital-related stress in young children, how to help children and their caregivers to manage hospital-related stress, and strategies to manage behavior problems within the hospital setting.