Health Care Play Specialism
Healthcare play specialism is a discipline concerned with supporting the emotional wellbeing of children who are experiencing the challenges of illness, hospitalisation, medical procedures and time in healthcare settings. Play is not incidental to this work: it is the primary medium through which children process experience, communicate feelings they cannot yet articulate verbally, and maintain a sense of agency and normality when their circumstances have become frightening and unpredictable. Healthcare play specialists use therapeutic play, preparation activities and distraction techniques to help children cope with treatment and recover from the psychological impact of health-related experiences.
At Southampton Solent University you will study healthcare play specialism over two years of full-time study, delivered through distance learning, which allows you to combine your studies with placements and practice alongside experienced healthcare professionals. You will develop the specialist skills and confidence needed to support children's emotional wellbeing in healthcare environments, learning from practitioners who work directly in the field and benefiting from excellent professional learning opportunities built into the programme. You will study child development, psychological approaches to play and wellbeing, safeguarding, communication and the professional frameworks that govern healthcare play practice.
Graduates work as healthcare play specialists and hospital play staff within NHS trusts, children's hospitals, paediatric units, outpatient departments, hospices and community health settings. The Healthcare Play Staff Education Trust provides the professional framework for the specialism, and this programme is designed to prepare graduates for roles within that professional community. The work is demanding but deeply rewarding, requiring emotional resilience alongside genuine skill in communicating and connecting with children and families in difficult circumstances.
Some graduates go on to further study in child psychology, play therapy, occupational therapy or healthcare management.