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Health play specialist

Health play specialist

Health and science

Level 5 - Higher Technical Occupation

Health play specialists provide therapeutic play interventions to support children from birth to young adulthood in healthcare settings.

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Reference: OCC0829

Status: assignment_turned_inApproved occupation

Average (median) salary: £20,954 per year

SOC 2020 code: 3214 Complementary health associate professionals

SOC 2020 sub unit groups:

  • 3214/04 Hospital play specialists

Technical Education Products

ST0829:

Health play specialist

(Level 5)

Approved for delivery

Employers involved in creating the standard:

Alder Hey Children's Hospital, Basildon & Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (L) (Health), Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Blackpool Victoria Hospital, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, Leeds Children's Hospital, Leeds City College, Manchester Children’s hospital, Nescot College, NHS Addenbrookes, Queens Medical Centre Nottingham, Society of Health Play Specialists, Solent University, University Centre Leeds, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, University of West London

Summary

This occupation is found in hospitals, outpatient clinics, community health centres hospices, NHS, and the private and voluntary sector.

The broad purpose of the occupation is to provide therapeutic play interventions to support children from birth to young adulthood in healthcare settings, throughout their healthcare journey. Play is at the centre of a child’s life and is accepted as vital to healthy growth, development, and a natural part of childhood. Play strategies are used to support babies, children and young people to understand their medical conditions and treatments and to adopt lifestyle changes that are required to manage long term conditions. Play is the tool used to gain informed consent from children and young people and to continue this work as the child and young person’s condition improves, deteriorates, their cognition develops, to transition to adult services or end of life.

The health play specialist will assess, observe, play, evaluate and report the relationships in families, skills and behaviours of children and provide professional reports for the safeguarding process.  They may be required to provide evidence in the family court.  A non-judgement approach is required as children are admitted to hospitals at a time of family crisis which has resulted in an injury or significant neglect to the infant child or young person.  An essential requirement of this role is professional annual re-registration with the Society of Health Play Specialists (SoHPS) demonstrating continuous professional development, practising within the scope of the Professional Standards.

In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with medical professionals such as consultants, doctors, nurses and allied health professionals, educational professionals, socials workers, schools, families, carers and other agencies to creative supportive environments for children and young people during their healthcare journeys.

An employee in this occupation will be responsible for the normalising, rehabilitation and therapeutic play techniques to prepare the child for medical, surgical and invasive interventions and procedures, seeking to promote informed consent. By using play as a therapeutic approach, it helps to reduce stress and fear associated with medical experiences, ultimately promoting better health outcomes and emotional resilience. Distraction and alternative focus activities provide autonomy through choice and control, augmenting the child’s coping strategies prior to and during procedures. Post procedural play supports children to make sense of health procedures and regimes. The health play specialist works collaboratively with other professionals at all times and especially when a life limiting diagnosis is made, through to end of life care.   

Employers involved in creating the standard:

Alder Hey Children's Hospital, Basildon & Thurrock University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (L) (Health), Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, Blackpool Victoria Hospital, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children NHS Foundation Trust, Leeds Children's Hospital, Leeds City College, Manchester Children’s hospital, Nescot College, NHS Addenbrookes, Queens Medical Centre Nottingham, Society of Health Play Specialists, Solent University, University Centre Leeds, University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, University of West London

Typical job titles include:

Activity co-ordinator
Healthcare play specialists
Learning disability health support specialist
Nursery nurse (special care baby unit)
Play leader
Play specialist
Registered community play specialist
Registered hospital play specialist
Therapeutic co-ordinator
Youth support co-ordinator

Keywords:

Care
Doctor
Health
Healthcare
Nurse
Play
Play Specialist
Science
Social Care

Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs)

K1: Standards of personal and professional conduct, possible conflicts of care and how to report breaches of professional standards.
K2: Limits of your practice.
K3: Lone working, personal and others’ safety, employer’s policies and the need to maintain the safety of service-users.
K4: Responsibilities to escalate and disclose information through the appropriate channels in regards to safeguarding and Prevent.
K5: Employers’ guidelines on reporting risks, incidents and escalation process.
K6: Registration requirements, continuous reflection and improvement to practice.
K7: National legislation, local policies, workplace procedures, advice, and guidance including relating to culture, equality, diversity, and inclusion.
K8: Professional duty of care and steps to reduce the risk of harm to service-users, carers, and colleagues.
K9: The importance of maintaining own health and wellbeing.
K10: Importance of ongoing professional development and training, professional registration and incorporating changes to own role.
K11: The nature and severity of a problem in professional situations.
K12: Developmental needs of the service-user and how to use normalising interventions, preparation, distraction, and post procedural play techniques by initiating, continuing, modifying and ceasing play.
K13: Play techniques and use of resources to improve the service users experience and wellbeing.
K14: Coping strategies in order to minimise service-user's distress and anxiety during clinical procedures.
K15: The importance of choice and control through service-user centred care that support positive outcomes.
K16: Partnership and team working approaches to ensure that clinical procedures are planned and managed.
K17: How sharing information, interventions and accurate records contributes to the management and the care provided for a service-user.
K18: Play interactions that enable a child and their family to understand their condition and learn the sensory and factual information they need to prepare for any treatment or procedure or to make any necessary lifestyle changes.
K19: The importance of gaining consent before providing care and support to service-users to maintain their own health and well-being.
K20: How to make and receive referrals in line with organisational policy.
K21: The importance of participation in training, mentorship, coaching and supervision in order to support service users, health professionals, colleagues, students, and apprentices.
K22: How to provide support and guidance to ensure that safe practice can be monitored and maintained when working with junior staff.
K23: How to supervise and delegate to others ensuring the knowledge, skills and experience required to work safely and effectively.
K24: The purpose of supporting the multidisciplinary team and other professionals to understand the needs and preferences of service-user's and how play and health services impact their care.
K25: Needs of different service-users and how to adapt practice or make reasonable adjustments to promote inclusive service provision.
K26: Ways to use, record and store data and information related to service-users securely and in line with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements and local and national policies, including the safe use of digital technology.
K27: Different communication skills and strategies to maximise understanding for service-users and to facilitate assessment and engagement of those with protected characteristics.
K28: Communication support systems which can assist the service-user and how interpersonal skills can encourage active participation.
K29: The importance and impact of team and partnership working to service delivery in and across different sectors and the value of sharing skills knowledge and expertise.
K30: The value of enabling and engaging service-users in planning and evaluating therapeutic play techniques to support treatments and interventions to meet their needs and goals.
K31: Evidence-based practice, audit procedures, systematic practice evaluation and continuous improvement.
K32: Information gathering to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions.
K33: Theoretical concepts underpinning play, therapeutic play and the development of service-user.
K34: Processes to devise, implement and review developmental and individual therapeutic play plans for the service-user.
K35: Normalising, developmental and therapeutic play activities within safe environments for service-users.
K36: Physical, psychological, social, cultural, and environmental needs, challenges and perspectives of service-users.
K37: The importance of continuous self-reflection, seeking and responding to support and feedback to develop professional knowledge and skills.
K38: Quality control, quality assurance and the role of audit and review in quality management and outcome measures.
K39: Socio-cultural diversity of the community and the specific local context of practice, and work-related policies and services that can impact on individual needs within a diverse society.
K40: The impact of economic inequality, poverty, and exclusion on and the ability to access services.
K41: Potential new and emerging areas of practice in play.
K42: Leadership theories and styles, and the impact these can have on service-users and the organisation.
K43: Current and developing sustainable principles and techniques.

S1: Maintain standards of personal and professional conduct, avoid possible conflicts of care and report breaches of professional standards.
S2: Work within the remit of your professional boundaries, inform appropriate practitioners if the care or treatment is not within the scope of your professional boundaries or expertise.
S3: Refer and delegate to appropriate practitioners wherever you find yourself unable to maintain objectivity and professional boundaries.
S4: Comply with lone working policies considering your own personal and others' safety.
S5: Adhere to safeguarding and prevent policies following procedures to escalate and disclosure of information, through the appropriate channels.
S6: Adhere to employers’ guidelines on reporting risks, incidents and escalation process.
S7: Reflection and improvement to practice to enable registration.
S8: Adhere to up to date national legislation, local policies, workplace procedures, advice, and guidance, supporting the rights of service users, colleagues and visitors, including relating to culture, equality, diversity, and inclusion.
S9: Exercise a professional duty of care ensuring no act or omission is detrimental to the condition or safety of service-users in your care or their families, carers and colleagues, to deal with concerns.
S10: Maintain own health and wellbeing, seeking advice and changing practise to reduce possible risks.
S11: Take personal responsibility for ongoing professional development and training opportunities and professional registration.
S12: Assess professional situations, determining the nature and severity of a problem acting within your professional scope of practice.
S13: Use normalising interventions, preparation, distraction, and post procedural play techniques by initiating, continuing, modifying, and ceasing play, based on the developmental needs of all service-users, to build on their abilities and enhance their experience.
S14: Apply play techniques selecting appropriate play resources to improve the service user's needs, experience and wellbeing.
S15: Apply coping strategies in order to minimise service-user's distress and anxiety during clinical procedures.
S16: Facilitate choice and control through service-user centred care, using play-based techniques that support positive outcomes.
S17: Work in partnership and with other professions as part of a team to ensure that clinical procedures are planned and managed.
S18: Share information, interventions and accurate records agreeing goals and priorities with other identified professionals to contribute to the management and the care provided for a service user.
S19: Guide a child and their family to understand their condition and learn the sensory and factual information they need to prepare for any treatment or procedure or to make any necessary lifestyle changes through play interactions.
S20: Encourage and help service-users to maintain their own health and well-being, and support them so they can make informed decisions ensuring patient consent is gained.
S21: Make and receive referrals in line with organisation’s referral policy.
S22: Participate in training, mentorship, coaching and supervision in order to support service users, health professionals, colleagues, students, and apprentices.
S23: Provide support and guidance to ensure that safe practice can be monitored and maintained when working with junior staff.
S24: Supervise and delegate to others ensuring the knowledge, skills and experience required to work safely and effectively.
S25: Raise awareness within the multidisciplinary team and other professionals of the needs, preferences and the impact of service-user's care through play and health services.
S26: Adapt practice or make reasonable adjustments to meet the needs of different service-users to take account of new developments, changing contexts and promote inclusive service provision.
S27: Use, record and store data and information related to service-users securely and in line with General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) requirements and local and national policies, including the safe use of digital technology.
S28: Use and adapt communication skills and strategies to maximise understanding for service-users and to facilitate assessment and engagement of those with protected characteristics.
S29: Undertake work collaboratively with others as part of a professional team in and across different sectors sharing skills knowledge and expertise.
S30: Engage service-users in planning and evaluating therapeutic play techniques to support treatments and interventions to meet their needs and goals.
S31: Engage in evidence-based practice and participate in audit procedures evaluating systematic practice, working towards continual improvement.
S32: Gather information to assess service-users, use information to evaluate the effectiveness of interventions and revise plans as necessary.
S33: Apply the theoretical concepts underpinning play, therapeutic play and the development of service-user.
S34: Devise and implement developmental and individual therapeutic play plans for the service-user including specific and timely reviews.
S35: Conduct normalising, developmental and therapeutic play activities, support procedures, treatments, therapy, or other actions within safe environments for service-users.
S36: Identify and assess physical, psychological, social, cultural, and environmental needs and challenges of service-users.
S37: Identify the importance of self reflection, using research, apply reasoning, problem-solving skills and feedback, to inform own practice and improve areas of personal performance.
S38: Participate in quality assurance programs.

B1: Show respect, compassion, and uphold the rights, dignity, values, and autonomy of all individuals whilst maintaining high standards of care.
B2: Recognise that you are personally responsible for own actions and decisions.
B3: Adopt an empathetic approach and demonstrate discretion.
B4: Promotes equality, diversity and inclusion within the team, the wider organisation and service users.
B5: Be adaptable, reliable and consistent, resilient and self-aware.

Duties

Duty D1

Practise safely and effectively within the scope of practice and within the legal and ethical boundaries of the profession.

Duty D2

Look after own health and wellbeing, seeking appropriate support where necessary.

Duty D3

Practise as an autonomous professional, exercising professional judgement.

Duty D4

Practise in a non-discriminatory and inclusive manner recognising the impact of culture, equality and diversity.

Duty D5

Communicate effectively, maintaining confidentiality and records appropriately.

Duty D6

Work with others.

Duty D7

Reflect on, review and assure the quality of own practice.

Duty D8

Draw on appropriate knowledge and skills to inform practice and apply the key concepts of the knowledge base relevant to the profession.

Duty D9

Establish and maintain a safe practice environment.