Poster Presentation: Maintaining Sibling Bonds During an Involuntary Separation

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Maintaining Sibling Bonds During an Involuntary Separation

The sibling relationship is one of the longest relationship experienced by children and reflects a complex/intimate bond. Therefore, when siblings are separated, the impacts are profound. The balancing grief and survival model offers a lens through which to view siblings’ unique experiences of grief and coping during their separation. As well, expressions of continuing bonds and the 5C’s can be utilized to maintain sibling relationships and support siblings’ psychosocial needs.

Learning Objectives:

Identify strengths of the sibling-child relationship, including various protective factors.

Recognize and consider the range of vulnerabilities, grief experiences and impacts to “normal” life that well children experience when they are separated from their sibling due to hospitalization or admission into a rehabilitation setting.

View children’s complex experiences, stressors and coping strategies during an involuntary separation from their ill sibling (due to hospitalization or an admission into a rehabilitation setting) through the balancing grief and survival model.

Critically examine continuing bonds to support the maintenance of the integral sibling bond and facilitate coping.

Discover developmentally appropriate strategies for psychosocial support through the use of expressions of continuing bonds and individualized communication/care plans for well siblings.

1 PDU
Suggested Domain: Assessment/Intervention

Melissa Christina Dodaro

BASc., ECS, MSc, CLPPC

McMaster University

Melissa Dodaro is a Certified Child Life Specialist with her Master’s degree from McMaster University in Child Life and Pediatric Psychosocial Care. She also has a Bachelor of Applied Science in Early Childhood Studies and Diploma in Early Childhood Education from the University of Guelph-Humber. Melissa is a practicing child life specialist, serving children and their families, in both hospital and community settings. Melissa specializes in child development and is an advocate for family-centered care and strengths-based approaches. Melissa is passionate about supporting children, adolescents, and families experiencing significant life changes and losses, through serious illness, death, and non-death related losses (such as sibling separation).