Creating Safe Enriching Play for Children with Medical Needs

Melody is a bright-eyed and curious 6-year-old who loves to play outside. Before her cancer diagnosis, she loved to come to Kidspace to ride the trikes and explore the Physics Forest. After she was diagnosed with cancer and her treatments compromised her immune system, playing outside with other kids and visiting her favorite places became too risky for her safety and well-being.

Joanne Ordono, a Certified Child Life Specialist for Cedars Sinai Pediatrics who coordinates Melody’s care reached out to Kidspace for help.

“It’s a tough situation to balance and we try our best to provide opportunities to normalize our patient’s experience while being very mindful of their safety,” Ordono said. “Part of their healing and recovery is acknowledging that they need developmentally appropriate activities to help them cope.”

Melody’s care team asked if we could make accommodations to create a safe space for her and her family to visit. Without the worry of exposure to crowds, Melody could be free to play, explore, spin, ride, and share special family time together. The museum would need to be deep cleaned and open just for the family and medical care team without other guests and members.

In conversations to plan the visit, Melody’s parents shared that the cancer treatments had taken a toll on her spirit. She felt isolated from the people and things that she loved, and she missed doing fun things. Instead, her days were filled with a seemingly endless list of “not fun things” related to her treatment.

As soon as Melody’s oncologist approved her visit, Kidspace got to work planning a day in her honor. By official proclamation posted at the entrance of the museum, Kidspace was temporarily renamed Melodyspace, with special activities designed just for her. Together with her sibling and cousins, Melody twirled on Los Trompos, sang around the campfire, made crafts in the Imagination Workshop, and cruised across the Golden Gate Bridge on trikes.

When the special Melodyspace visit came to an end, Melody and her family enjoyed dino s’mores treats and left with a Muddy Boot Farm bag filled with gifts to remind them of their joy-filled morning.

“This experience made such a remarkable impact on Melody and her family and added such a positive light to this chapter of her life,” Ordono said.

After their visit, Melody’s mom Michelle reported, “She had such a wonderful time. She was smiling, skipping, and dancing. She said she was happy she went to Kidspace. Hearing those words has brought us so much joy. Needless to say, she’s been on a tough journey this year. Her time at Kidspace will be a highlight during this time and a memory she can hold on to.”

Kidspace is building more opportunities for enriched play and family time for children with medical needs through our partnership with Cedars Sinai Pediatrics, Ronald McDonald House Charities, and others. The museum is finding creative ways to help children leave behind the stresses of diagnosis, appointments, and treatment, even if just for a little while, to reenter the silly, healing, and life-affirming space of play.