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.

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

In accordance with the CHRISTUS Health License, Certification and Registration Verification Policy, all Associates are required to obtain the required certifications for their respective positions within the designated time frame.

Work Schedule:

8AM - 5PM Monday-Friday

Work Type:

Full Time

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About CHRISTUS Health

CHRISTUS Health is an international faith-based, not-for-profit health care system based in Irving, Texas, with more than 60 hospitals in Texas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Chile, Colombia and Mexico. CHRISTUS Health is made up of 50,000 Associates providing compassionate and individualized care at more than 600 centers, including community hospitals, clinics, long-term care facilities and health ministries. Sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word of Houston, Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word of San Antonio and the Sisters of the Holy Family of Nazareth, our mission is to extend the healing ministry of Jesus Christ to every individual we serve.

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