TRAUMA and mental health problems are a real threat to children in hospitals across the South West if they are denied opportunities to play, according to a new report by a charity.
In Prioritising Play in Healthcare in Areas of Deprivation, published to mark Play in Healthcare Week (October 14-18), charity Starlight reveals that a lack of play in healthcare settings disproportionately impacts children experiencing deprivation, with higher rates of hospitalisation among this group across England.
Starlight’s report states that out of the 1.2 million children’s hospital admissions and attendances in the South West per year, 46 per cent are for children and young people (CYP) experiencing deprivation.
The report reveals the link between play in healthcare settings and improved mental health for all children, and the huge gaps in health play professional roles and resources across England.
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Cathy Gilman, chief executive of Starlight, said: “Going to hospital can be scary and overwhelming and no child and their family should have to navigate the intense emotions around this experience alone.
“Research shows that play, orchestrated by trained health play professionals, provides children with the feelings of calm and safety they need to get through hospitalisation without trauma.
“It is as shocking as it is sad that children experiencing deprivation are more likely to be affected. Research has long established that areas of deprivation have higher rates of hospitalisation, but the fact that children from these parts of England are more likely to develop long-term mental health problems as a result is heartbreaking.”
To address these inequalities, Starlight is joining with the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health and many others to call for the government to instate a new cabinet minister for children, not just education.
The new administration has said that its election will usher in “a new era of child-centred government where children come first”.
Starlight estimates there are currently more than 4 million adults in the UK living with mental health problems such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) as a result of negative experiences of healthcare in childhood.