Child Life Specialist

Description

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Job Summary: Join Our Team at UNC Health Youth Behavioral Health as a Child Life Specialist!

UNC Health Youth Behavioral Health (YBH) in Butner, North Carolina, is seeking a passionate and team-oriented Child Life Specialist to support our patients and their families. YBH is a state-of-the-art, 54-bed psychiatric facility providing 24-hour care for children and adolescents facing mental health challenges, dual diagnoses, substance misuse, and complex behaviors. Our philosophy emphasizes a trauma-informed, therapeutic environment designed to foster safety, positive coping skills, and healthy living.

Qualified candidates will work directly with the Mental Health Team Therapy Services Managers at the Medical Center and Youth Behavioral Health team. In addition to meeting the day-to-day coping and adjustment needs of pediatric patients and families, the Child Life Specialist teaches, supervises, and evaluates the work of volunteers and child life student interns.

In this role, you will assess and provide developmentally appropriate treatment for pediatric physical, cognitive, social, emotional, leisure/play, and life skill needs. You will also educate families on effective methods and strategies to improve pediatric patients  quality of life and provide community outreach education and programmatic services to enhance children’s overall well-being.

We’re looking for a dynamic professional with excellent interpersonal skills, a commitment to collaboration, and a dedication to making a difference in the lives of young patients.

If you’re ready to join a supportive team in a meaningful role, apply today!

Schedule: This position is 40 hours/week, Monday through Friday, with occasional weekend and holiday coverage requirements.

Please note: This position requires satisfaction of the Child Life Certifying Commission’s coursework and internship requirements prior to the start of employment. This includes 600 child life internship hours under the supervision of a certified child life specialist.

Responsibilities:

• Evaluates patient progress towards treatment goals and responses to treatment interventions, adapts as necessary in compliance with departmental performance expectations.
• Initial assessment and evaluation—Individually assesses/evaluates patient, formulates clinical impressions and recommendations for treatment, referral for other services or provision for no service based upon the analysis of assessment data, and reports assessment findings to appropriate individuals in compliance with departmental performance expectations.
• Internship management—Recruits, screens, interviews, selects, supervises and evaluates child life interns in accordance with department performance expectations.
• Outreach—Develops and facilitates community outreach programs that promote the Children’s Hospital and the health and wellbeing of children in accordance with departmental performance expectations.
• Planning—Interprets assessment data accurately, determines appropriate treatment goals in conjunction with the overall treatment plan, designs treatment plans and individualized treatment interventions for the assigned patient population to meet their treatment needs in compliance with departmental performance expectations.
• Plans for all needed resources, coordinates program scheduling and plans and facilitates group and individual treatment interventions with co-workers and other disciplines in compliance with departmental performance expectations.
• Plans for patient discharge and recommends continued service or aftercare in accordance with departmental performance expectations.
• Program development—Develops new or revises existing programs & interventions to reflect current patients  needs, interests and abilities and to promote safety in compliance with departmental performance expectations.

Education Requirements:

• Bachelor s degree in Therapeutic Recreation, Child Life or a related field that meets the Child Life Council s recommendation for…