When Maddie Shutwell ’21, M.S. ’24, finished her studies, she had a good idea of what she wanted to do for work and where she wanted to do it. The only glitch in her plan was the fact that Memorial Hospital in Carthage, her hometown, had never had a child life specialist on staff. That all changed back in May, when Shutwell pitched the idea and then helped create the job.
After earning her bachelor’s degree in human development and family science at Illinois State University, Shutwell set her sights on a master’s degree, this time in the child life sequence. As an alum, she already knew about the graduate program and its director, Dr. Keri Edwards.
“I really liked how she portrayed the program, and I liked that it was nice and small,” Shutwell said.
The idea to pursue child life as a career path came about due to a tragedy that happened while she was still in high school.
“My high school boyfriend, Cale Hartrick, was diagnosed with stomach cancer,” she said. “When he went to the University of Iowa Hospital for treatment, a child life specialist worked with his family, and they were all really fond of her.”
While Shutwell didn’t meet the practitioner, the experience the Hartrick family had made a lasting impact on her. Sadly, her boyfriend died 18 months later.
Edwards has been part of Shutwell’s academic journey all six years from freshman year through graduate school. She’s also been an integral part of helping her get started on her professional path.
“Dr. Edwards helped with my hospital placements and internships,” Shutwell said. “She has so much knowledge, and she really helped me become the professional I am. I take a lot of what I learned from her to my job, and I’m still in contact with her to this day.”
Initially the idea to start a child life program at her hometown hospital came about because she wanted to live near her family. Now 25 and a newlywed since September, she and her husband, Jackson Porter, both have younger siblings in the area, so they’ve made their home in Carthage.
“I knew the CEO of the hospital, so I said, ‘Hey, I’m graduating soon, here’s what I’m doing, and it would be a good thing to start here.’ That’s how it got started,” Shutwell said.
The hospital has eight surrounding clinics in communities that she travels to. She works with two pediatricians and a handful of family practice doctors. A big part of her job is to meet with families to help reduce fears and anxieties for children who are nervous about going to the doctor—that can be for anything from immunizations to blood draws or surgery prep.
“While our pediatric population isn’t large, I believe that’s no reason that these kids can’t learn to cope well and have positive experiences when they need medical care,” she said. “I build rapport with kids and teach them through medical play. We demonstrate—sometimes on their mom—what they’re about to experience.”
Shutwell uses her own medical kit and starts by pretending, sometimes with a child’s parent acting as her patient.
“We pretend Mom is being checked, and then the kids see that she’s OK,” she said. “Once they see that their parents aren’t scared to come to the doctor, then it’s no problem at all.”
Most of the families Shutwell sees have kids who range in age from 2-12, but she can work with babies up to 18-year-olds. It’s a good feeling for her to see the progress in the kids who first came in crying and are now calm and cooperative when they come for a doctor’s visit.
To be certified for the profession, Shutwell was required to complete several clinical experiences. She did her clinicals in Peoria at OSF Children’s Hospital of Illinois, Almost Home Kids, Methodist Hospital, and at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana. In addition, she had an internship at the University of Michigan CS Mott Children’s Hospital in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
One of her most important clinical experiences came when she and Edwards spent four weeks in Cape Town, South Africa, where they provided child life services at two hospitals and an orthopedic facility.
“There’s no child life program there, and we were considered volunteers, but we did a lot of observing,” she said. “Even though there was a language barrier at times, we could still play with the kids and help them.”
She said the trip offered perspective by seeing another health care system.
“It was a really interesting and amazing experience,” she said.
Shutwell likes the idea that parents often view those in her role as the teachers of the hospital. While it’s early in her career, she believes that what she’s doing can have a long-term effect on the young children she’s helping now.
“I believe kids should have some control when it comes to seeing the doctor,” she said. “I’m teaching them coping skills and giving them tips and tricks to cope, so they’ll feel competent to ask questions. This can help them to have a have a voice for later years when they’re older.”