Planning for outdoor play: Government and family decision-making.

BACKGROUND: Despite indisputable developmental benefits of outdoor play, children with disabilities can experience play inequity. Play decisions are multifactorial; influenced by children's skills and their familial and community environments. Government agencies have responsibilities for equity and inclusion of people with disabilities; including in play. AIM: This multiple-perspective case study aimed to understand outdoor play decision-making for children with disabilities from the perspectives and interactions of: local government and families of primary school-aged children with disabilities. MATERIAL AND METHOD: Five mothers, four local government employees, and two not-for-profit organization representatives participated in semi-structured interviews. Inductive and iterative analyzes involved first understanding perspectives of individuals, then stakeholders (local government and families), and finally similarities and differences through cross-case analysis. FINDINGS: Local government focused more on physical access, than social inclusion. Local government met only minimal requirements and had little engagement with families. This resulted in poor understanding and action around family needs and preferences when designing public outdoor play spaces. CONCLUSION AND SIGNIFICANCE: To increase meaningful choice and participation in outdoor play, government understanding of family values and agency around engagement with local government needs to improve. Supporting familial collective capabilities requires understanding interactions between individuals, play, disability, and outdoor play environments.

Estudio piloto sobre la implementación de un programa lúdico en el contexto escolar para la estimulación del lenguaje / Pilot study of the implementation of an educational play-based program for language stimulation in the school setting

En el presente estudio se ha diseñado y aplicado un programa lúdico-educativo con el fin de estimular el lenguaje de niños de último curso de educación infantil con y sin dificultad específica. Este programa pretende responder a la necesidad de herramientas en el aula que, de forma atractiva y dinámica, actúen sobre las dificultades que pueden aparecer durante el desarrollo del lenguaje oral de los niños. Para ello, se empleó un diseño pre-post con una muestra de 25 alumnos de tercer curso de educación infantil. Las evaluaciones se realizaron a través de un registro de observación del lenguaje y de la Prueba de lenguaje oral de Navarra revisada. Las actividades del programa lúdico están basadas en el juego dirigido y se centran en aspectos como la atención, el reconocimiento visual, la lateralidad, el ritmo y la fluidez del habla, la discriminación auditiva, etc. Su duración ha sido de un mes, con 2 sesiones semanales de 45 min. Los resultados reflejan diferencias estadísticamente significativas en la mayoría de las variables objeto de intervención. Si bien se trata de un estudio piloto, los resultados parecen apoyar la utilidad de intervenciones breves de tipo lúdico-educativo aplicadas a nivel grupal en el contexto escolar para la estimulación del lenguaje (AU)

In the present study, an educational play-based program was designed and implemented to stimulate the language of children with or without specific difficulties in the last year of primary education. This program aimed to respond to the need for dynamic tools in the classroom to correct difficulties that may arise during the development of children's oral language. To do this, a pre-post design was used with a sample of 25 students in their third year of primary education. Evaluations were performed by the Revised Navarre oral language test and an observational procedure specifically designed for this study. The program's activities were based on directed play and focused on aspects such as attention, visual recognition, laterality, rhythm and fluency of speech, auditory discrimination, etc. The program lasted for 1 month with two weekly sessions of 45 min each.Statistically significant differences were found in most of the variables. Although this was a pilot study, the results seem to support the usefulness of brief interventions for language stimulation applied at the group level in schools (AU)

[Playing games to help deal with the end of life]. / Jouer pour apprivoiser la fin de la vie.

Allowing a child to play until the end of his/her life, such is the objective which a paediatric nursing team has set itself The games must enable the child and his family to organise psychologically the emotional chaos provoked by impending death. They question and provide an answer to an intolerable situation--the end of a child's life.

Oficina de Confecção de brinquedos de sucatas na comunidade, para crianças assistidas pelo Programa Saúde da Família e Núcleo de Apoio à Saúde da Família que residem em áreas de alta vulnerabilidade próximas à UBS Vila Dionísia

Relato de uma experiência que vem sendo realizada, pela Equipe Saúde da Família bucal e o Núcleo de Apoio à Saúde da família, na comunidade de famílias assistidas pelo PSF. Os grupos surgiram diante de uma demanda muito grande de crianças sem atividade extraescolares, moradoras em áreas de alta vulnerabilidade. O incentivo a essas crianças a brincar trouxe de volta à comunidade um jeito diferente de ver aquelas crianças. Criança que é criança brinca, criança que não brinca não está bem. O brincar auxilia no desenvolvimento motor, cognitivo e sócio – afetivo da criança. Na comunidade, a coleta seletiva é precária, então aproveitamos isto e iniciamos a construção de brinquedos a partir de material reciclável ajudando na conscientização da importância de reciclar/reaproveitar ajudando nosso planeta.

Oficina de Confecção de brinquedos de sucatas na comunidade, para crianças assistidas pelo Programa Saúde da Família e Núcleo de Apoio à Saúde da Família que residem em áreas de alta vulnerabilidade próximas à UBS Vila Dionísia / Workshop Production of toys scraps in the community for children assisted by the Family Health Program and Support Center for Family Health residing in areas of high vulnerability to the next village Dionysia UBS

Relato de uma experiência que vem sendo realizada, pela Equipe Saúde da Família bucal e o Núcleo de Apoio à Saúde da família, na comunidade de famílias assistidas pelo PSF. Os grupos surgiram diante de uma demanda muito grande de crianças sem atividade extraescolares, moradoras em áreas de alta vulnerabilidade. O incentivo a essas crianças a brincar trouxe de volta à comunidade um jeito diferente de ver aquelas crianças. Criança que é criança brinca, criança que não brinca não está bem. O brincar auxilia no desenvolvimento motor, cognitivo e sócio – afetivo da criança. Na comunidade, a coleta seletiva é precária, então aproveitamos isto e iniciamos a construção de brinquedos a partir de material reciclável ajudando na conscientização da importância de reciclar/reaproveitar ajudando nosso planeta.(AU)

Adapted Couple Therapy (ACT) for pathological gamblers: a promising avenue.

The study of the effectiveness of treatment for pathological gambling constitutes a field that is still largely unexplored. To date, the models assessed primarily target the individual and include little or no involvement of the family circle. Yet, the deleterious effects of gambling on loved ones and especially spouses are well recognized. Further, the addition of a couple modality to individual treatment has been shown to be effective on many levels in the treatment of substances use disorders. This article therefore proposes a critical review of (1) the literature providing a better understanding of the complex interactions between the couple relationship and pathological gambling, (2) studies on the effects of couple therapies on gamblers and their partners. We then present the therapeutic model developed by our team of clinician-researchers in collaboration with actors from Québec clinical settings: Adapted Couple Therapy (ACT) for pathological gamblers. In the Québec context, this model will serve as a complement to an individual cognitive-behavioral treatment model that has been proven effective and is employed throughout the Canadian province. The assessment of couple therapies could reveal avenues of solutions to better assist pathological gamblers who tend to drop-out of treatment and relapse.

Play therapy as a mental health intervention for children and adolescents.

Play therapy is a child-centred therapy for children between the ages of 3 and 16 years who have mental health and/or other difficulties. The play therapist works one to one with the child, allowing children to explore their inner emotional world in almost any way they choose in the play room. The therapist sets a few necessary behavioural limits in order to safeguard physical and emotional safety during the weekly sessions. Children from all kinds of families come for play therapy. Some have witnessed domestic violence, or experienced abuse or other trauma. Some have conflicted relationships with the parents or carers arising out of insecure attachment and/or other issues. Provided that the child has some level of symbolic play, play therapy has the potential to help. The other provisos are that the home environment is sufficiently supportive at a basic level, and that the parent or carer is willing to support therapy. Children typically have play therapy for between two and 12 months, depending on the complexity of their difficulties. Play therapists analyse sessions and track changes to determine when to plan the ending with the child. Play therapists come from a range of professions and undertake full-time or part-time training in play therapy leading to a post-qualifying diploma or Master's degree. Qualified play therapists work in, or undertake work for, Child and Adolescent Mental Health (CAMH) services, Children's Services (Social Care), schools, and voluntary sector agencies.

Effectiveness and appropriateness of therapeutic play intervention in preparing children for surgery: a randomized controlled trial study.

PURPOSE: This paper aims to examine the effectiveness and appropriateness of using therapeutic play in preparing children for surgery. DESIGN/METHOD: A randomized controlled trial was employed. Children (7-12 years of age; n = 203) admitted for surgery during a 13-month period were recruited. RESULTS: The results support the effectiveness and appropriateness of using therapeutic play in preparing children for surgery. PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS: The study results promote awareness in nurses and parents that play is a very important part of children's lives, and heighten the importance of integrating therapeutic play as an essential component of holistic and quality nursing care to prepare children for surgery.

Para uma história do presente do brincar e das práticas em saùde / For a history of the present of playing and health practices / Para una historia del presente, del jugar y de las prácticas en salud

O objetivo deste estudo é refletir sobre a necessidade de fazer uma aproximação histórico-discursiva para contextualizar e analisar criticamente os discursos e as práticas hospitalares e de enfermagem relacionadas aos espaços para o brincar nas enfermarias pediátricas nos hospitais. O Estatuto da Criança e do Adolescente promulgado por Lei Federal em 1990 é um documento norteador de uma nova visão, ligada ao campo da infância e da juventude. Dentre as conseqüências do ECA, está a de estabelecer um modo diferente do adulto se relacionar com as crianças e, que os efeitos sobre os cuidados em saúde, deveriam supor e concretizar mudanças e transformações no cotidiano hospitalar. Tentamos mostrar a necessidade de problematizar e contextualizar como o nosso cotidiano hospitalar está determinado por discursividades que operam silenciosamente. Para resistir aos efeitos destes dispositivos, as práticas da saúde e as de enfermagem devem ser repensadas e retificadas nos seus respectivos dispositivos disciplinares.

The purpose of this study is to reflect on the need to perform a historical-discursive approach to contextualize and analyze in a critical way hospital and nursing discourses and practices related to spaces to play in pediatric infirmaries at hospitals. The Statute of the Children and Adolescents, made into a Federal Law in 1990, is a document that guides a new vision concerning the field of childhood and youth. Among the consequences of the ECA, there is the establishment of a different mode for the adult to relate with children, and that the effects on healthcare should assume and effect changes and transformations in the hospital scenario. We have tried to show the need to problematize and contextualize how our hospital scenario is determined by discourses that operate silently. In order to resist to the effects of such devices, health and nursing practices should be rethought and rectified in their respective disciplinary devices.

El objetivo de este trabajo es reflexionar sobre la necesidad de hacer una aproximación histórico-discursiva para contextualizar y analizar críticamente los discursos y las prácticas hospitalarias y de enfermería relacionadas a los espacios para el jugar en las salas de internación de pediatría en los hospitales. El Estatuto del Niño y del Adolescente promulgado por Ley Nacional en 1990 es un documento que indica el camino para una nueva visión relacionada al campo de la infancia y de la juventud. Entre las consecuencias del ECA, está la de establecer una forma diferente de relación entre el adulto y el niño y que los efectos sobre los cuidados de la salud deberían suponer concretizar cambios y transformaciones del cotidiano hospitalario. Intentamos mostrar la necesidad de problematizar y contextualizar cómo nuestro cotidiano hospitalario está determinado por discursos que operan silenciosamente. Para resistir a los efectos de estos dispositivos, las prácticas de salud y de enfermería se deben repensar y rectificar en sus respectivos dispositivos disciplinarios.

[For a history of the present of playing and health practices]. / Para uma história do presente do brincar e das práticas em saúde.

The purpose of this study is to reflect on the need to perform a historical-discursive approach to contextualize and analyze in a critical way hospital and nursing discourses and practices related to spaces to play in pediatric infirmaries at hospitals. The Statute of the Children and Adolescents, made into a Federal Law in 1990, is a document that guides a new vision concerning the field of childhood and youth. Among the consequences of the ECA, there is the establishment of a different mode for the adult to relate with children, and that the effects on healthcare should assume and effect changes and transformations in the hospital scenario. We have tried to show the need to problematize and contextualize how our hospital scenario is determined by discourses that operate silently. In order to resist to the effects of such devices, health and nursing practices should be rethought and rectified in their respective disciplinary devices.

Therapeutic play and bone marrow transplantation.

Constructive, therapeutic play is an essential part of the care of children with long-term hospitalizations. The O'Connor theoretical framework supports the importance of play in ensuring the emotional, developmental, and physical health of children. The negative effects of long-term hospitalization are particularly evident for children who have undergone bone marrow transplants and must be kept in germ-free environment and isolation for extended periods of time. This article describes a successful play therapy program in a Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, using a play cabinet designed to provide readily available, sterilized toys that are appropriate for each of four age groups. Two cases are presented that show the efficacy of the use of the play cabinet in play therapy programs.

Meeting the bereavement needs of kids in patient/families--not just playing around.

Children grieve differently than adults. Although the unit of care in hospice is the patient and family, emphasis is often on the grown members of the family and the anticipatory grief and bereavement needs of children and adolescents are sometimes not met adequately. In this paper, hands-on strategies for working with children both before and after a significant death are presented, as well as appropriate context information on the grieving process for youth under age 18.

Children in hospital: II. Reading therapy and children in hospital.

Following the survey of book and library services described in the first of these two articles (Health Libraries Review, 8, 210-219), a research project funded by BNB Research Fund in 1991 investigated the theory and practice of reading therapy with children in hospital. Hospital play staff had been identified as the therapists most commonly involved and a number of them were interviewed using advance notice questionnaires and structured discussion. The following aspects were investigated: definitions of reading therapy, children in hospital, the reading therapy process, materials used, evaluation, services to facilitate and promote reading therapy, training and the role of libraries and librarians. Recommendations relate to practice, to provision and listing of materials, to evaluation procedures and to training. The final conclusions relate to the role of librarians in the processes and development of reading therapy with children in hospital.

Group play therapy. Using an interaction model with delayed regressed behaviors in children.

This article gives an overview of individual play therapy and relates the concepts of individual play therapy to group play therapy. A new model of group play therapy, an interactional model, is introduced. The article provides basic guidelines for beginning play therapists. An actual group is described and specific interventions for problems are suggested.