CHILDKIND INTERNATIONAL

The ChildKind initiative was conceived by the Special Interest Group on Pain in Childhood of the International Association for the Study of Pain to reduce pain in children by formally recognizing healthcare facilities that have made an institutional commitment to providing pain relief. If a hospital can provide evidence that it has made such a commitment and has in place policies, protocols, quality audits, and ongoing educational activities that address pain, it can apply for designation as “A ChildKind Hospital”. This designation, endorsed by ten international organizations, is testimony to the fact that the hospital has made the comfort of those for whom it provides care, a foundational value. This approach has been applied to the promotion of breast feeding through the hugely successful Baby Friendly Initiative, a joint WHO/UNICEF project which has been, at least in part responsible for an enormous increase in breast feeding in the developed and developing world. To date, four institutions (Boston Children’s Hospital, Connecticut Children’s Medical Center, Seattle Children’s Hospital, and the Hospital for Sick Children) have been designated as ChildKind facilities.