Medical play helps children and teens become more comfortable and familiar with the hospital. Play, a normal childhood activity, is the core of the program. Play promotes expression of feelings, a sense of mastery, and comfort with medical procedures. Through play, children can work out fears of abandonment, bodily harm, and loss of control. It also helps them develop in physical, social, intellectual, emotional, and spiritual ways.
Child Life specialists use play to encourage children to handle medical objects in a nonthreatening manner. Play sessions give children the chance to express themselves and the specialist an opportunity to watch for signs of anxiety or misunderstanding about their healthcare experience. Preparing children ahead of time eases their fears and helps them trust medical staff. That's why hands-on experiences, such as role playing with medically modified dolls and stuffed animals, are used to help children get ready for medical procedures.
Ways to provide medical play for your child by age:
Infant...(Birth-1 year)
- Let infants explore (mouthing, grasping, touching) play and real medical equipment.
- Play peek-a-boo with doctor hats and masks.
- Let your infant watch you play with medical equipment and dolls.
Toddler...(1-3 years)
- Play peek-a-boo with doctor hats and masks.
- Let your child explore and play with medical equipment.
- Play doctor with medical equipment and dolls. Add some real medical equipment to a play doctor kit.
- Water play with syringes in the bathtub.
Preschooler...(3-5 years)
- Make medical collages with things found in the hospital (band-aids, gauze, tongue depressors, cotton balls, etc).
- Syringe painting (filling syringes with paint and squirting on paper) and water play with syringes.
- Play and explore with medical equipment and dolls.
School-aged...(6-12 years)
- Make a collage or sculpture with medical materials.
- Paint with syringes.
- Write a story or poem about going to the hospital.
- Design tongue depressor picture frames.
- Play and explore with real medical equipment and dolls.
Teen...(13+ years)
- Explore and ask questions about medical equipment.
- Create artwork inspired by the hospital.
- Write songs, poems, and stories about the hospital.
- Make sculptures and collages out of medical materials.