Playing for fun, memories and reassurance

Whether it is supporting a family in hospital, preparing a child for a daunting operation or bringing the beach to the intensive care unit, community Play Specialist Kerry is on hand to create ever-lasting memories and fun.

“Being a Play Specialist at Claire House means I’m here to support babies, children, young people and their families wherever they might need me. It could be at home, in school, at the hospice or in hospital.

“For a lot of the children that the hospice supports, their whole life is structured around appointments, procedures and medicines, so quite often they need someone to have fun with.”

Eight-year-old Sayuri was diagnosed with a brain tumour at 16 months old and has been supported by the hospice ever since.

Her condition means she has had many operations and treatments.

During the pandemic, Sayuri was very unwell in hospital following an operation. Visitors weren’t allowed, but as a member of the hospice team, Kerry was able to visit.

“Sayuri was very poorly and although she wasn’t up to playing, I was just able to sit with her, massage her feet and help her to relax,” said Kerry.

For Sayuri, her sessions with Kerry are a chance to have fun and build confidence.

She enjoys imaginative play, whether she is running a café or playing school. She has a huge collection of teddies who get involved too.

“I play with all my toys with Kerry. I get to do lots of fun things.

“We play board games and do treasure hunts. Once I was really brave and held a giant snake and I’ve met Olaf the Snowman and all of my favourite Disney Princesses,” said Sayuri.

Kerry uses play to prepare children for treatment, distract them during a procedure, and help them understand what they have experienced.

“It can be very scary going to appointments and sometimes children just need someone to be their voice. In hospital they aren’t always asked how they feel or what their wishes are, so I help them to do that.

“We prepare for appointments by having fun making little booklets which have lists of all of their wishes.

“It means they can say they want to use a mask or they really like to wear their fluffy socks when they go to theatre. It actually gives the child a voice and helps to ease their anxieties.”

Kerry also supports families when their child is at the end of their life, helping them to create mementos and charms.

“When a family is having a really tough time, I help them put that to one side for just an hour and plan a nice activity for them, so they’ve got some lovely memories.

“For some families they might have something they would really like to do with their child. It doesn’t matter how big or small it seems, we try and make it happen no matter what.

“We were supporting a little boy called Charlie and his mum and dad’s one wish was to take him to the beach. They wanted him to hear the waves and feel the sand. He was in hospital on intensive care so he was just too poorly to take him; instead we took the beach to them.

“We had a tray full of sand. We put wave music on in the background, had water to splash in and had toy seagulls hanging around his bed. We got sunglasses for all the family members to wear so we could take photographs like they were at the beach and it was just beautiful.

“Mum said all she wanted was for her little boy to feel the sand between his toes and we were able to make that happen.

“It’s a tough job sometimes, but it’s lovely to be able to help a family create lasting memories. It makes it all worthwhile when I see the hand and footprints upon a parent’s wall after the child has died or they say, ‘we were at a really low point and you gave us half an hour to enjoy just spending time together’.”