Job Description

What Awaits You:

• Opportunities for Career Growth – Build a meaningful career with access to professional development, mentorship, and advancement pathways.
• Collaborative and Inclusive Environment – Work alongside a diverse team of professionals who value mutual respect, innovation, and teamwork.
• Comprehensive Benefits Package – Take advantage of a competitive and affordable benefits program that supports your health, financial security, and overall well-being.

Position Summary

The Child Life Specialist supports patients, families, and the health care team by assessing psychosocial and developmental needs and providing therapeutic interventions to improve the health care experience. This role requires strong communication, customer service, creativity, group facilitation, and time management skills, along with the ability to work effectively with diverse patients, families, and interdisciplinary teams.

Key Accountabilities

• Assesses patients, family members, and significant others to identify developmental, emotional, social, psychological, cultural, and environmental needs.
• Provides developmentally appropriate interventions to help patients and families cope with illness, hospitalization, pain, grief, and loss.
• Creates a safe, therapeutic environment that promotes positive coping during hospitalization and medical care.
• Facilitates group activities that support socialization, interaction, and coping.
• Collaborates with the interdisciplinary care team and documents child life interventions in the medical record.
• Provides education and in-service training to staff, students, volunteers, and community members regarding psychosocial and developmental needs of pediatric patients.
• Trains, supervises, and mentors interns, practicum students, and volunteers.
• Organizes and prioritizes work to ensure timely support for patients and families with the highest psychosocial needs.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Child Life, Child Development, or a related field; master’s degree preferred
• Child Life Certification required within one year of hire
• Strong knowledge of child development and the ability to assess and respond to age-specific needs
• AHA Basic Life Support (BLS) required

Salary Range: Minimum 23.02/hour - Maximum 36.83/hour. Compensation will be commensurate with equity and experience for roles of similar scope and responsibility. In cases where the range is displayed as a $0 amount, salary discussions will occur during candidate screening calls, before any subsequent compensation discussion is held between the candidate and any hiring authority.

The Hospital reserves the right to modify employee schedules as needed.

We are committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive environment, where we embrace and celebrate our differences, where all employees feel valued, contribute to our mission of serving the community, and engage in equitable healthcare delivery and workforce practices.

Johns Hopkins Health System and its affiliates are drug-free workplace employers.

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