Director Child Life Services - Other Anc Child Life at CHRISTUS Health

Summary:

Responsible for the financial and clinical management of Child Life Services, Therapy Dog Program, Child Life Zone, Music Therapy, the Hospital School Program, Child Life volunteers, Child Life students, and the Family Advisory Board. Maintains 24-hour responsibility for all human, fiscal, and material resources for the department. Responsible for the integration of patient- and family-centered care principles into the hospital’s policies/practices and the promotion of child advocacy. Responsible for the coordination of special events, donor relations, and community partnerships.

The CHRISTUS Children’s Hospital, established in 1959, was the first children’s hospital in South-Central Texas. Located downtown, this 190-plus-bed hospital serves more than 70,000 children annually from San Antonio, South Texas and around the world. The hospital (in partnership with Baylor College of Medicine) is the only academic children’s hospital in San Antonio. Our highly specialized services meet the unique medical needs of children, from Pediatric and Neonatal Intensive Care to Children’s Emergency Services, the latest treatments for deformities of the spine including halo traction, a Heart Center, a specialized asthma program, a highly regarded Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, and growing maternal services to include consultation, delivery, and maternal fetal medicine.

Responsibilities:

• Meets expectations of the applicable OneCHRISTUS Competencies: Leader of Self, Leader of Others, or Leader of Leaders.
• Establishes and implements individual and departmental goals which are designed to facilitate corporate, institutional, and divisional goal attainment.
• Monitors operations of the department and measures progress towards goals, identifying problems and taking corrective action.
• Participates/serves as a member/chair of intra- and interdepartmental committees and task forces focused on improving patient care and outcomes.
• Collaborates with all departments in an effort to provide excellence in service.
• Acquires and maintains needed departmental resources (human, fiscal, and material).
• Counsels, guides, and serves as a mentor to associates in the department.
• Evaluates the job performance of associates in the department and collaborate in the development of professional development goals. Facilitates performance evaluations and maintains associate files in compliance with regulatory requirements.
• Directs the process improvement activities for the department.
• Confronts and resolves conflicts in a timely and effective manner.
• Identifies educational needs of staff members and plans and implements programs to meet their needs.
• Serves as a resource for other departments, providing educational programs as needed. Serves as the Family Advisory Board Chair and facilitator for the Patient- and Family-Centered Care Committee.
• Identifies the educational needs of children and families and works with departments to develop programs to meet these needs.
• Actively seeks sources of funding in collaboration with the Children’s Hospital Foundation, managing the receipt, and distribution of all donations. Assists Foundation with grant writing and presentations on department goals for purposes of obtaining funds for the department.
• Manages the Facility Therapy Dog Program and the Child Life Zone Programming in c
• Serves as the coordinator for special events for children.
• Serves as the hospital liaison with the school districts.
• Manages third-party vendor relationships for outsourced programs (e.g., pet therapy, music therapy, etc.)
• Responsible for the Child Life internships and practicums in compliance with ACLP guidelines.
• Demonstrates competence to perform assigned patient care responsibilities in a manner that meets the population-specific and developmental needs of patients served by the department.
• Appropriately adapts assigned patient care assessment, treatment, and/or care methods to accommodate the unique physical, psychosocial, cultural, age-specific, and other developmental needs of each patient served.
• Demonstrates adherence to the CORE values of CHRISTUS Health, the CHRISTUS Santa Rosa Health Care Corporation, and the Children’s Hospital of San Antonio.
• Must have knowledge of growth and development, patient/family reactions to hospitalization, and coping strategies.
• Must possess interpersonal skills and communicate effectively.
• Must have a working knowledge of educational development.
• Must understand hospital policies and medical terminology/procedures.

Job Requirements:

Education/Skills

• Master’s degree in Child Life or a related field is required.
• Under the supervision of a Certified Child Life Specialist, must have completed a 600-hour child life internship.

• Bilingual – English/Spanish is preferred.

Experience

• Minimum of 8 years paid experience as a Certified Child Life Specialist required.
• 2 years of experience in a Children’s Hospital is required.

• 7+ years of leadership experience preferred.

Licenses, Registrations, or Certifications

• Must maintain Child Life Certification.
• BLS certification is required within 90 days of hire.

Work Schedule:

5 Days - 8 Hours

Work Type:

Full Time

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