Child Life Specialists
Child Life Specialists
Our Child Life team helps make the hospital more kid-friendly and less scary.
Child Life specialists help infants, children, and families cope with the stresses of acute and chronic illness, injury, trauma, disability, and bereavement.
Services include:
- Preparation & support for medical procedures
- Age-appropriate education
- Pain management & coping strategies
- Play & self-expression activities
- Memory-making & legacy-building activities
- Family psychosocial & emotional support
- Support for siblings
With help from the Child Life team, children are better able to adjust to and understand the medical environment.
Child Life specialists are available in the Children's Hospital, including the Melodies Center and the Massry Family Children's Emergency Center, to meet with upon request or at the suggestion of your doctors and nurses. Please don't hesitate to ask your health care team about this service.
Child Life Wish List
Thank you for considering a donation to the Bernard & Millie Duker Children's Hospital!
Your generosity has a direct and positive impact on the patient experience for each infant, child, and teenager in our care. Your donation makes it possible to equip our playrooms, celebrate birthdays or holidays, and so much more. We greatly appreciate your generosity!
View our Amazon Wishlist here!
Below, you'll find suggestions for items we need, and items we can't accept.
Please call Albany Medical Center Foundation to schedule a donation drop-off: 518-262-3322
- Coloring Books for children, teens, and adults
- Crayons, markers, and colored pencils (Crayola brand preferred)
- Liquid glue
- Painting Sets/Craft kits
- New wooden projects
- Little People playsets
- Nintendo & Xbox One games
- Card games - Uno, SkipBo, Scrabble Slam, Pictureka, Blink, and regular playing cards
- Lego kits - small and medium size
- Toy characters - Paw Patrol, Disney, Sesame Street, Dinosaurs, etc.
- Aquarium Crib Soothers
- Grab-and-go activity packs
- Wipeable blocks
- Onesies - Newborn-24 months
- Pajamas - Size 2T-14
- Play-Doh - individual cans and playsets
- Straw sippy cups
- Small foam/rubber sports balls
- New & unused stuffed animals
- Kid-themed bandages
For Teens: manicure sets, makeup sets, books, art sets, handheld electronic games, gift cards, model kits, scrapbooking kits
For Parents: Toiletries for parents spending the night in the hospital with their child
- Travel size deodorant
- Travel size shampoo & conditioner
- Dry shampoo
- Toothbrushes/Toothpaste
- Hairbrushes
- Baby soap/shampoo
- Hair detangler
Gift cards are used by the Child Life team to purchase patient-specific gifts. They're also given out to families to help them purchase meals while visiting their child, or for gas to help commute to/from the hospital.
- $10-$20
- Dunkin'
- Starbucks
- $15-$20
- Bellini's Counter
- Buffalo Wild Wings
- Chipotle
- Jimmy John's
- Panera Bread
- Recovery Room
- Subway
- $20-$25
- Walmart
- Target
- CVS
- $25-$50
- Amazon
- Grocery store - Price Chopper, Hannaford
- Gas card - Sunoco, Mobil, Speedway
Due to infection control and the sensitive nature of our patient population, we are unable to accept the following
- Used or old stuffed animals
- Food, drinks, candy, gum
- Used toys
- Used clothing
- Wrapped gifts or Get Well cards
- War games or toy guns of any kind - including water pistols or Nerf guns
- Toys larger than approx. 1 foot
- Sporting goods/equipment
- Religious materials - books, toys, music
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Child Life Specialist Lauren Pierce with the Vecta Deluxe Mobile Sensory Station, used to help soothe and distract pediatric patients. -
Child Life Specialist Nicole Sanders. -
Child Life Specialist Mary Beth Nichols, and Melodies Center patient Sophia. -
Child Life Specialist Terri Waite. -
Child Life Specialist Maureen Sharkey. -
Child Life Specialists bringing costumes, candy, and goodies to children's hospital rooms on Halloween.
Volunteering in the Children's Hospital
Those who volunteer in the Bernard & Millie Duker Children’s Hospital are under the direct supervision of the Child Life Specialists.
Children in the hospital greatly benefit from play. Our wonderful volunteers can bring play to the bedside and help our patients have a little fun during their hospital stay. During a volunteer shift, the volunteer will receive a daily census of children and families to see and support. We also rely on our volunteers to help maintain our playrooms by keeping them clean and organized.
We appreciate all our volunteers and what they bring to our program! For more information, please contact Kelly Morrone at [email protected].
Music Therapy
Medical music therapy uses live music to address specific treatment goals based on family input and feedback from the health care team, and to help enhance a patient's quality of life. Goals are adapted to each child's circumstances and abilities. Our music therapist helps create a calm and hopeful experience for patients and families.
Music therapy aims to:
- Increase coping skills
- Reduce stress and anxiety
- Help with processing emotions
- Help elevate mood and decrease depression
- Develop a sense of normalcy through play
- Promote relaxation to help with pain management
- Provide cognitive and sensory stimulation
- Compliment occupational therapy, physical therapy and speech and language pathology
- Address motor goals, cognitive goals and psychosocial goals
- Connect with non-English speaking patients through music and cultural rhythms
Therapy Dogs
The pet therapy program at Albany Medical Center has brought comfort and joy to countless patients, employees and students for more than 20 years.
The program is led by Albany Medical Center's Volunteer Services.
