Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital awarded $15,000 grant for sensory-friendly play equipment to support youths experiencing behavioral health crises
Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital, the only Level II Pediatric Trauma Center in Western Washington, received a $15,000 grant from Child’s Play: Grants for Play Projects, to support sensory-friendly experiences for youths experiencing mental health crises.
“Mental illness is a top three cause for medical hospitalization for children between 10 and 18 years old in Pierce County,” said Chris Ladish, PhD, chief clinical officer of pediatric behavioral health at Mary Bridge Children’s and MultiCare Behavioral Health Network. “The incidence of children and adolescents with behavioral health challenges has steeply increased over the past decade, but the pandemic has notably exacerbated the issue.”
Due to limited behavioral health inpatient beds available in the region, children are admitted to Mary Bridge Children’s emergency department and placed under 1:1 surveillance to keep them safe until they can be transferred to an appropriate facility.
Many youths experiencing mental health crises also have secondary cognitive challenges such as autism or sensory processing disorders. When treated in traditional emergency department settings, anxiety often increases for this population, creating additional risks for both patient and hospital staff harm. Admissions for this population can last days and weeks, sometimes even months at a time. Access to tools like sensory-appropriate play equipment reduces levels of patient distress, restraint and isolation.
“The more that we can meet these kids where they’re at — physically, emotionally and cognitively — the better the outcomes are for their overall health and wellness,” said Liz Goodwin, MOT, OTR/L, occupational therapist at Mary Bridge Children’s. “This grant will help us provide a safer environment with appropriate physical and mental stimuli to meet the needs of patients who are dealing with both mental health issues and also sensory-processing sensitivities.”
Mary Bridge Children’s will use the grant to purchase sensory-friendly play equipment such as tactile step-n-stones, rest mats, sensory tiles and a mood light table, texture walls and inflatable ball chambers.
Mary Bridge Children’s was one of six children’s hospitals to receive a grant in the latest round of funding from Child’s Play and is one of only 17 children’s hospitals nationwide to receive this grant in 2021. Child’s Play is a partnership between the Toy Foundation and the Children’s Hospital Association (CHA) and awards grants to children’s hospitals to make play more accessible to patients.
Mary Bridge Children’s currently has four emergency department beds dedicated to patients in mental health crisis. Its new hospital building, designed just for children, will open in late 2024 and will include additional pediatric behavioral health crisis rooms to meet the needs of this patient population. For more information about the replacement hospital project, visit Our New Hospital.