Child Life Specialist

Overview

Our team members are the heart of what makes us better.

At Hackensack Meridian Health we help our patients live better, healthier lives - and we help one another to succeed. With a culture rooted in connection and collaboration, our employees are team members. Here, competitive benefits are just the beginning. It's also about how we support one another and how we show up for our community.

Together, we keep getting better - advancing our mission to transform healthcare and serve as a leader of positive change.

The Child Life Specialist implements child life care providing a safe and nurturing environment where children and adolescents can enrich coping skills, address psychosocial needs, and increase understanding of issues related to medical experiences.

The schedule is Monday - Friday 11am-7:30pm

We are looking for a Certified Child Life Specialist. Experience in a Children's Hospital is preferred.

Responsibilities

A day in the life of a Child Life Specialist at Hackensack Meridian Health includes:

• Assesses psychosocial and developmental needs of pediatric patients and develops care accordingly.
• Counsel's family members regarding issues related to patient's development and ability to cope with their hospitalization, diagnosis and medical treatment.
• Provides individual and/or group support for children and adolescents inpatient and/or outpatient.
• Provides Child Life Services to patient and family members in accordance with the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP) and defined and interpreted by supervisor.
• Maintains records of practices and tracks trends for reporting as requested.
• Works in collaboration and communicates with treatment team to enhance care to patients.
• Completes timely documentation in EPIC as required.
• Helps oversee Child Life volunteers within unit.
• Task supervises interns within Child Life/Creative Arts Therapy department.
• Provides supervision to bachelor's level child life interns in accordance with department, educational site and ACLP standards.
• Maintains child friendly and safe playrooms as designated.
• Participates in team programming, i.e. task forces and committees within department or hospital.
• Assists with Child Life and CH Foundation events.
• Identifies the needs of the patient population served and modifies and delivers care that is specific to those needs (i.e., age. Culture, hearing and/or visually impaired, etc.) This process includes communicating with the patient, parent and/or primary caregiver(s) at their level (developmental/age, educational, literacy, etc.).
• Adheres to the standards identified in the Medical Center's Organizational Competencies.

Qualifications

Education, Knowledge, Skills and Abilities Required:

• Bachelor's degree in creative arts therapy, child psychology, special education, occupational therapy, social work, or equivalent.
• Minimum of 1 year utilizing Child Life services or Internship with children/adolescents in a medical setting.

Licenses and Certifications Required:

• Certified Child Life Specialist within 18 months of entering position.

If you feel that the above description speaks directly to your strengths and capabilities, then please apply today!
Starting Minimum Rate

Starting at $55,556.80 Annually

Job Posting Disclosure

HMH is committed to pay equity and transparency for our team members. The posted rate of pay in this job posting is a reasonable good faith estimate of the minimum base pay for this role at the time of posting in accordance with the New Jersey Pay Transparency Act and does not reflect the full value of our market-competitive total rewards package.

The starting rate of pay is provided for informational purposes only and is not a guarantee of a specific offer. Posted hourly rates may be stated as an annual salary in the offer and posted annual salaries may be stated as an hourly rate in the offer, depending on the level and nature of the job duties and credentials of the candidate. The base compensation determined at the time of the offer may be different than the posted rate of pay based on a number of non-discriminatory factors, including but not limited to:

Labor Market Data: Compensation is benchmarked against market data to ensure competitiveness.
Experience: Years of relevant work experience.
Education and Certifications: Level of education attained, including specialized certifications, credentials, completed apprenticeship programs or advanced training.
Skills: Demonstrated proficiency in relevant skills and competencies.
Geographic Location: Cost of living and market rates for the specific location.
Internal Equity: Compensation is determined in a manner consistent with compensation ranges for similar roles within the organization.
Budget and Grant Funding: Departmental budgets and any grant funding associated with the job position may impact the pay that can be offered.

Some jobs may also be eligible for performance-based incentives, bonuses, or commissions not reflected in the starting rate. Certain positions may also be eligible for shift differentials for work performed on evening, night, or weekend shifts.

In addition to our compensation for full-time and part-time (20+ hours/week) job positions, HMH offers a comprehensive benefits package, including health, dental, vision, paid leave, tuition reimbursement, and retirement benefits.