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An Exploration Of Child Life Programming And Facility-Canine Assisted Therapy In Pediatric Hospital Settings, Bailey N. Barnett

MSU Graduate Theses

The field of Child Life and of canine-assisted therapy have both been shown to facilitate opportunities for patients to cope more positively during hospitalization. The purpose of this study is to explore the attitudes, experiences and perceptions of current Certified Child Life Specialists (CCLSs) who are primary or secondary FCAT handlers within child life departments that also run facility canine assisted therapy (FCAT) programs in a pediatric hospital. Qualitative data were collected from the participants using an online one-time survey through, Qualtrics. Four research questions were explored, specifically inquiring about the positive and negatives of FCAT programs, specific interventions where …