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Full Schedule

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Full Schedule

  • Wednesday, May 20, 2026
  • 1:00pm - 5:00pm CST
    Beyond Knowing Too Much: Trauma, Parenthood, and Child Life Practice
  • 1:00pm - 5:00pm CST
    Breaking the Silence - Conversations Leaders Rarely Have
  • 1:00pm - 5:00pm CST
    Innovate to Elevate: Transforming Play into Purposeful Practice
  • 1:00pm - 5:00pm CST
    Pixels & Play: Bringing AI into Child Life Practice
  • 1:00pm - 5:00pm CST
    Select Don’t Collect: Bibliotherapy for Grieving Children
  • 1:00pm - 5:00pm CST
    Unlocking EPIC’s Potential: Tools to Boost Child Life Impact
  • Thursday, May 21, 2026
  • 8:15am - 9:45am CST
    Keynote
  • 10:00am - 11:00am CST
    Energize and Engage Break - Grand Opening of Exhibit Hall
  • 11:00am - 12:30pm CST
    Heart of Trauma: Emotional Safety and Care in Pediatric Emergencies
  • 11:00am - 12:30pm CST
    Navigating Developmental and Behavioral Diagnoses in Child Life Assessment
  • 11:00am - 12:30pm CST
    Navigating the Shift: Empowering Adolescents for Adult Healthcare Systems
  • 11:00am - 12:30pm CST
    The Power of Perspective - Learning from Each Other
  • 11:00am - 12:30pm CST
    Trading Prizes for Power: Motivation Matters
  • 11:00am - 12:30pm CST
    Utilizing Simulation for Bereavement Training
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    A Qualitative Descriptive Study Exploring Intern Selection Processes in Canada
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    A Student's Learning Experience in a Community-Based Setting
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Child Life Specialists: Supporting Children of Incarcerated Caregivers
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Comparing Distraction Methods for Pediatric Burn Dressing Pain Management
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Guided Journaling for Parental Preparedness in Pediatric ENT Surgery
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Helping Children Understand Military Deployments
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Moral Distress Among Child Life Specialists
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    The Use of Student ePortfolios During Internship Application & Selection
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Unmasking CPAP Fear Through Child Life Support
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Urodynamics: More than just a catheter
  • 12:30pm - 2:30pm CST
    Lunch in Exhibit Hall
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    Bridging the Gap: Child Life in High-Risk Cardiovascular Outpatient Clinics
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    Culture Under Construction: Foundations for Hospital-Wide Emotionally Safe Care
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    Easing the Ouch: Child Life Specialists in Pediatric Pin Removals
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    Expanding Sensory Access Through Occupational Therapy Partnerships
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    Fontan PREP: A Multidisciplinary Model for Preoperative Psychosocial Support
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    One Person, Big Impact: Sibling Visitation in Satellite NICU Setting
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    The Ripple Effect: How Precepting Fuels Professional Passion
  • 2:30pm - 3:30pm CST
    Unknown to ‘I’ve Got This’: Mentors + Tours in Action
  • 3:45pm - 4:45pm CST
    Bite Sized Education: Small Snacks for Big Impact
  • 3:45pm - 4:45pm CST
    Challenging Implicit Bias: A Conscientious Approach to Addressing Health Equity
  • 3:45pm - 4:45pm CST
    Child Life in Pediatric Primary Care for Opioid-Exposed Infants/Children
  • 3:45pm - 4:45pm CST
    From Fear to Cooperation: A Child Life Approach to Desensitization
  • 3:45pm - 4:45pm CST
    Leading from the Middle
  • 3:45pm - 4:45pm CST
    Promoting Emotional Safety for Pediatric Burn Patients through PRAP Assessments
  • 4:45pm - 6:15pm CST
    Bites & Bubbles in Exhbit Hall
  • Friday, May 22, 2026
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    From Burnout to Breakthrough: New Pathways in Child Life
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    From Stress to Safety: Advancing Emotional Safety Culture
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    How Do They Decide? Exploring Internship Selection Practices
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Leveling the Playing Field: Exploring Accessible Gaming, Empowering All Patients
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Rethinking the Routine: Primary Care Leads in Needle Pain Management
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Turning Moments into Metrics: Child Life Evaluation
  • 10:00am - 11:00am CST
    Energize and Engage Break in Exhibit Hall
  • 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
    "Culture of Influence" as a Model for Mentorship Program Development
  • 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
    From Pager to Ping: Bridging Generations in Child Life
  • 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
    Is More Enough? Parent Perceptions of Hospital-Based Bereavement Supports
  • 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
    Responding to Community Violence and Trauma: A Multidisciplinary Approach
  • 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
    The Numbing Effect: Bias, cultural expression, & children’s pain
  • 11:00am - 12:00pm CST
    Utilizing Hospital Minecraft Server for Normalization and Surgery Preparation
  • 12:00pm - 2:00pm CST
    Lunch in the exhibit hall
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    "You're doing What?!" Impact of Preparation for Velopharyngeal Evaluations
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    Chaos to Continuity: A CCLS Transition from ED to Clinic
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    Feeding the Monster: Anxiety & Child Life Practice
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    Innovating Legacy: Utilizing Canva to Enhance Legacy-Building Practices
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    Rewriting the Narrative: A Paid Path to Child Life
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    Sharing the Load: Shared Governance in a Multi-disciplinary Team
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    The Evolving Toolbox: Using AI to Spark Creativity and Efficiency
  • 2:00pm - 3:00pm CST
    Transforming the NICU Experience Through Playgroups for High-Risk Infants
  • 3:15pm - 4:45pm CST
    From Panic to Playdough: Co-Regulating Through Crisis in Disaster
  • 3:15pm - 4:45pm CST
    Navigating Gender-Affirming Care in a Rapidly Changing Healthcare Landscape
  • 3:15pm - 4:45pm CST
    Neurodiversity in Child Life: Expanding Inclusive, Individualized Approaches
  • 3:15pm - 4:45pm CST
    Pioneering Licensure: A Child Life Moonshot
  • 3:15pm - 4:45pm CST
    Their wishes: Elevating AYA Voices in Advance Care Planning
  • 3:15pm - 4:45pm CST
    VCUGs: A Child-Life led Quality Improvement Initiative
  • Saturday, May 23, 2026
  • 8:00am - 8:30am CST
    Refreshment Break
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Death Planning: Reframing Time and Space at End of Life
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    From Bedside to Beyond: A Hybrid CLS Internship Pilot
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    From Crisis to Coping: Child Life's role in Pediatric Trauma
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Influencing policy changes to support families of organ donors
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Play...the Trauma Informed Way!
  • 8:30am - 10:00am CST
    Research 101: Taking Your Next Step on the Inquiry Pathway
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    Coming Full Circle: The Ripple Effect of Mentorship
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    Empowering Patients: Promoting Compliance through Autonomy in New-Onset Diabetes
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    Empowering the Voice of Child Life Among Medical Team
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    From Findings to Frontlines: Attachment Influences Coping After ER Visits
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    How Much Money do you Make? Exploring Child Life Compensation
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    Pediatric Transitions to Adult Healthcare: A Guide for Child Life
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    Strands of Courage: Addressing the Psychosocial Impact of Hair Loss
  • 10:15am - 11:15am CST
    You’re Always Accepted Here: Inclusive Support at End of Life
  • 11:30am - 12:30pm CST
    Closing Assembly