Title: Why Therapeutic Play is Not Only Fun, but Essential
Thesis: Therapeutic Play is an essential part in the well being and healing of the physically and mentally disabled because it is evident that play is a critical part of one’s childhood. Through play, a child can further learn social skills, learn the process of their medical procedures, and accept the normalcy of play to be able to understand that it is okay for them to have fun and still be a child even through their struggles.
Question: “Is therapeutic play effective for people suffering from mental or physical disabilities? Does it increase societal participation and wellbeing?”
Purpose: My purpose is to argue my belief of the importance of Therapeutic Play. Through my disciplines, Child Life (HSR), psychology, and education, I learned that play is a necessary part of childhood and there could be detrimental effects if a child has never participated in proper play. I am going to show how play is not only essential for the mind, but how it can also be a natural healer in a hospitalized child. Through my found knowledge from these disciplines and my credible sources, I will be able to create an effective argument to convince readers that Therapeutic Play is essential in children suffering with mental or physical disabilities, including hospitalization.
Proposed Organization:
I. Intro/thesis
a. Thesis: Introduce Therapeutic Play… (definition, why it is needed, etc.)
b. Explain why it is needed and how many children’s hospitals believe in its’ importance
c. Explain why I believe the topic is important and why HSR, EDU, and PSY courses aid to the understanding of Play’s benefits.
II. First Discipline: Psychology
a. Explanation of Psychology and its relation to therapeutic play. Why/ does play help the mind?
b. Use credible sources on play’s benefits to the mind and explain how play is used to restore well-ness of the mind, and how it is an important part of curing illness and healing injuries.
III. Second Discipline: Human Services
a. Explanation of Human Services and specific Child Life courses… (counseling, therapeutic play, children and families in healthcare)
b. Information on Human Services and describe the benefits. Use sources about medical professionals finding trust with therapeutic play and the ability to build deeper relationships.
IV. Third Discipline: Education
a. Explain education and how therapeutic play relates to learning.
b. Further information and sources about how play enhances learning.
V. Conclusion:
a. Restate my thesis and main points.
b. Give a call to action to my readers to agree in play’s importance and persuade every hospital to have Therapeutic Play incorporated into their healing mechanisms.
Resources:
Borges Martins de Freitas, Bruna Hinnah, and Sirlei dos Santos Araújo Alves Voltani. “Therapeutic Play in the Pediatric Urgent and Emergency Department: An Integrative Literature Review.” Cogitare Enfermagem, vol. 21, no. 1, Jan. 2016, pp. 1–8. EBSCOhost, search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=113038730&site=eds-live.
Caleffi, Camila Cristina Ferreira, et al. “Contribution of Structured Therapeutic Play in a Nursing Care Model for Hospitalised Children.” Revista Gaucha de Enfermagem, vol. 37, no. 2, June 2016, p. e58131. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1590/1983-1447.2016.02.58131.
Crane, Jonathan L., and Christine S. Davis. “Child’s Play: The Role of Play in Mitigating the Fear of Death Among Pediatric Palliative Care Team Patients, Families, and Caregivers.” Journal of Loss & Trauma, vol. 23, no. 4, May 2018, pp. 317–334. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1080/15325024.2018.1446271.
Jordan, Brigid. “Therapeutic Play within Infant–parent Psychotherapy and the Treatment of Infant Feeding Disorders.” Infant Mental Health Journal, vol. 33, no. 3, May 2012, pp. 307–313. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1002/imhj.21321.
Havenga, Yolanda. “Therapeutic Play as a Qualitative Data Generation Method: A Critical Reflection.” Health SA Gesondheid, no. 9, 2019. EBSCOhost, doi:10.4102/hsag.v24i0.1136.
Silva, Sabrina Gisele Tobias da, et al. “Influence of Therapeutic Play on the Anxiety of Hospitalized School-Age Children: Clinical Trial.” Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem, vol. 70, no. 6, Nov. 2017, pp. 1244–1249. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1590/0034-7167-2016-0353.
Wilson, Brittany J., and Dee Ray. “Child‐Centered Play Therapy: Aggression, Empathy, and Self‐Regulation.” Journal of Counseling & Development, vol. 96, no. 4, Oct. 2018, pp. 399–409. EBSCOhost, doi:10.1002/jcad.12222.