独特的视角

作为童年癌症的幸存者, Blazie Gilder has a unique perspective that she hopes will benefit children experiencing traumas like hospitalization. Gilder will graduate from the University of Idaho in May 2023 with a degree in 人类发展和家庭研究她离成为儿童生活专家的目标又近了一步.

在特洛伊长大, Gilder was an active and healthy kid when she suddenly began experiencing intense pain in her back which eventually spread throughout her body.

“We were trying to find out what was wrong with me for a little over a year,”她说。. “My family was so desperate to find answers we were going to the doctor every few months because the pain kept getting worse.”

At age 11 Gilder was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and immediately began treatment at Sacred Heart Children’s Hospital in Spokane, 华盛顿. She spent a year in and out of the hospital for chemotherapy treatments and developed a strong relationship with the doctors, 护士和儿童生活专家被分配到她的病例.

Child life specialists work with children and their families to help them cope with the trauma of hospitalization, 疾病和残疾. 他们帮助孩子了解他们的疾病或伤害, 正在执行的程序, 参与游戏治疗和分散注意力的技巧. They also provide support, guidance and information to parents, caregivers and siblings.

“They were the ones always checking in with me and making sure I was comfortable with what was happening,”她说。. “他们倾听并支持我想做的事情.”

实现她的激情

Gilder’s experiences led her to pursue her own career in the medical field. She originally enrolled at U of I as a medical sciences student with the intent of becoming a physician. During the COVID-19 pandemic she began to rethink that decision.

“I realized after thinking about it for so long that it wasn’t truly what I wanted in the medical field,”她说。. “我想对我的病人产生更直接的影响, and I found that the best way for me to do that was to pursue a career in child life.”

吉尔德联系 特白，学术顾问 玛格丽特·里奇家庭与消费者科学学院, to learn more about degrees that could set her on the path to becoming a child life specialist. 她知道她要和孩子们一起工作, 还有他们的父母和兄弟姐妹, so White recommended the degree in 人类发展和家庭研究.

“I was so filled with anxiety about the decision to change my major,”她说。. “我不想让任何人失望. I knew in myself that I wasn’t changing my major because I wasn’t good enough to be a doctor, 因为这不是我想要的. 就在极速和特雷弗通电话之后, he reassured me that I was making the right decision if that’s what was best for me. 从那以后我再也没有回头.”

The support she received from her community while battling cancer inspired her to add a minor in human and community engagement, 除了她的预科辅修课程.

“My community had such an amazing impact on me during that time and supported my family and I,”她说。. “I wanted to see how I could connect my patients in the future with their community.”

为患者发声

Although a master’s isn’t required to become a child life specialist, Gilder felt that furthering her education and gaining additional experiences was important. She has been accepted into the University of Georgia’s child life master’s program and will relocate to Athens, 毕业后的乔治亚.

The master’s program provides coursework and practicum experiences in hospital settings that meet the Association for Child Life Professionals requirements for becoming a certified child life specialist. After completing the program Gilder will be qualified to sit for the child life certification exam.

“我是从, 伊利诺伊大学为我进入这个领域打下了坚实的基础. But in order to be as prepared as I can to best meet the needs of my patients, I wanted to pursue further education and training to get more hours in hospitals and ensure that I’m hitting that coursework that is very specific for this career,”她说。.

吉尔德希望最终能回到帕卢斯. To her knowledge there are no child life specialists in the area.

“I’d love to work in an area that is rural and underserved because that would have made all the difference to me growing up,”她说。. “It’s sad for me to think about patients in this area who maybe can’t commute that far or don’t have issues serious enough to go to a children’s hospital, 但他们在这方面仍然需要宣传.”

Gilder is excited for the next chapter in her story and the chance to impact children who may be experiencing similar situations to those she was once in.

“I am able to empathize with my patients in a way that a lot of other professionals in the field might not be able to,”她说。. “它让我对事物有了独特的看法. Maybe it will allow me to be a little more creative about the approaches I take.”