The Emotional Safety Initiative: Ensuring Kids Are at Ease During Medical Procedures

In the early days of the pandemic, my daughter, who had suffered from a respiratory infection the previous winter, began to wheeze. She often woke in the night needing a nebulizer treatment. I was terrified—my first thought was COVID-19. Her pediatrician prescribed a COVID test, and in those uncertain times, the only testing method involved a nasal swab performed by someone in a protective suit reaching through the car window. My daughter braced herself and endured the swab (thankfully, she tested negative!). Nearly a year later, she still recounts the experience as the “swab that touched her brain.”

While she emerged from it with just a story, many children could develop a lasting fear and distrust of medical settings from similar experiences. This is where Child Life Specialists step in, and the Emotional Safety Initiative aims to address these concerns.

We spoke with Emma Johnson, President of the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP), about the Emotional Safety Initiative and the newly published paper advocating for an emphasis on prioritizing children’s emotional safety alongside their physical safety in healthcare environments.

What Is The Emotional Safety Initiative?

The Emotional Safety Initiative is a movement focused on placing emotional safety on par with physical safety in all pediatric medical experiences. Emotional safety “is an intentional, interdisciplinary practice to foster resilience, healing, and trust for pediatric patients and their families during medical encounters,” according to a statement from the ACLP. Essentially, it’s about creating a stress-free and emotionally supportive experience for patients and their families, as explained by Johnson.

The Four Pillars of the Emotional Safety Initiative

The initiative is structured around four key elements:

Screening and Assessment: This component aims to understand patients and their families to build a supportive environment. It includes gathering insights about families’ experiences, strengths, and challenges, either in advance of a planned admission or on-the-spot during emergencies.
Intervention: This aspect emphasizes the child’s comfort and understanding their past experiences with medical procedures. Johnson indicates the goal is to “identify what was challenging so we can avoid replicating that.”
Environment: Johnson points out that many elements of a medical setting can be intimidating for children—from the attire of adults to the size of the equipment. This part of the initiative encourages healthcare providers to create a friendly atmosphere. For instance, her hospital is designing a new patient room layout with a focus on parental support.
Education, Training, and Communication: Everyone in the healthcare setting, from security personnel to medical staff, plays a role in ensuring emotional safety. This component aims to educate all staff about emotional safety standards.

Emotional Safety Is Equally Important as Physical Safety

According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, around 80% of pediatric patients and their families experience some form of traumatic stress after medical treatment for serious illnesses or injuries. Short-term effects can include developmental setbacks and sleep disturbances, while long-term consequences can be more severe, leading to difficulties in trusting healthcare as an adult.

Johnson shared a poignant story about a relative who developed a condition at just seven years old. During her treatment, emotional safety was overlooked, and her parents could only visit during specific hours. After undergoing seven surgeries and a year-long hospitalization, she developed a profound fear of medical settings, ultimately leading to her untimely passing from a treatable condition. This tragic account underscores the enduring fear that motivates Child Life Professionals to advocate for emotional safety.

How Parents Can Foster Emotional Safety

The best way for parents to support emotional safety is to comprehend the potential impacts of medical procedures. Even seemingly minor procedures, like a nasal swab, can have lasting effects that aren’t alleviated by a simple reward afterward, Johnson emphasizes. It’s crucial for parents to ask questions and understand their options, as they are the foremost experts on their children.

For further insights, parents can explore a guide on the Emotional Safety Initiative website that offers questions to pose to healthcare providers and tips for accessing emotionally safe care. The overarching aim of the Emotional Safety Initiative is to help healthcare professionals and parents recognize that providing emotionally safe care positively affects both the physical and mental well-being of patients and their families. Emotional safety is essential for fostering a healthy, lifelong relationship with healthcare.

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In summary, the Emotional Safety Initiative emphasizes the need to create emotionally supportive healthcare environments for children, recognizing that such an approach is as critical as addressing their physical safety. Understanding the emotional impacts of medical experiences can help parents and healthcare providers work together to foster healthier relationships with medical care.