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Interview

SCHOOL REENTRY
Questions for Hilary:

 What qualifies a child for a school reentry? / When are they appropriate?

 How long have they been around for/ these approaches been utilized?

 How common are they?

 What logistical steps do you need to take to arrange them?

 What preparation do you have to do with the child/ family prior?

 How are the actual assemblies organized/ run?

o What is your role in the assembly?

 What is the typical response from other students that you have observed (or been reported to
you) in the short/ long term?

 What are teens perspectives on school reentries as opposed to younger children?

o They are adapted to be age appropriate

In our meeting Hilary explained that there are 2 different types of school reentries that

she arranges for patients from Shriners Hospital, including onsite and off sight reentries. Onsite

reentries are presentations that she creates and physically goes to the school to present. These

presentations are tailored to the developmental age of the patient and audience she is speaking

to. The off-site programs are often done for international patients or patients who do not wish for

a Shriners representative to directly come to their school. For these programs families and

schools are provided with either a power point, videos or letters with other materials to be

shared as they wish. The number of patients who choose to do a school reentry from Shriners

will vary year to year.

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Different families will desire to do school reentries differently or not at all following a

major burn. It is all based on their comfort level and what they think would benefit their child.

However, even if they did initially not wish to do a school reentry, Shriners makes the resources

to do one available to families at any point in time if they desire. Even if the burn injury occurred

when the child was very young, a school reentry presentation could potentially be done if the

child is having a difficult time with bullying in middle or high school. Although adolescents are

much less likely to choose to do a school reentry than younger school aged children.

Anyone at Shriners qualifies for a school reentry, however more appropriate cases

usually have been on the inpatient unit. In most cases school reentries are utilized by school

aged children and younger, particularly if they have visible scars or a burn associated with a

loss (such as the loss of a house or loved one). If the child is being bullied at school these

programs are particularly appropriate. Many children struggle returning to school from a burn for

a number of reasons, often related to their sense of identity and confidence. Part of the school

reentry presentation is showing that just because someone’s physical appearance may have

changed, and they may be a bit different, they are still the same person they were before.

The organizational piece of the school reentry presentations (often done through power

points) are created using the same Phenix society program entitled “The Journey Back”. The

Phenix society has been actively growing resources to assist hospitals in designing school

reentry programs and the use of their resources in assisting children in educational settings is

increasing. During our meeting we specifically focused on the onsite reentry of a girl named

Emma returning to 8th grade, Emma had TENS as a result of Steven Johnson's Syndrome as

well as some developmental delays. Emma’s PowerPoint began by including a quote from

Emma describing what TENS was and why she has been out of school for so long. This gives

the child an opportunity to frame and share their experience the way they want to. Patients and

families can be as involved in the creation of their reentry presentation as they like. Reentries

often require a lot of logistical work with the parents, getting consent, selecting pictures of their
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child’s stay at Shriners etc. The family is also vital in deciding how and what information should

be presented to who. How many students the presentation will be shared with depends upon

the school, and who the child readily interacts with and sees. For example, for some children a

presentation to 1st and 2nd graders may be appropriate if they have overlapping classes or

recess with children in these grades, while for others a kindergarten circle time may be more

appropriate.

Depending on the child’s developmental age the presentations also talk about Shriners

hospital itself, age appropriate science behind burns, scars the child’s conditions and how that

has impacted them, and pictures from their stay. These pictures often show various kinds of

supports the child utilized at the hospital, including rehab, nutrition etc.

Presentations also address the psycho-social piece of the child’s return to school,

particularly touching upon things that have not changed about them, like the music they like to

listen to or the things they like to do. It also talks about how to welcome the child back into the

school. Prevention measures are also presented, particularly related to burn hazards. Lastly

there is a time for questions in which students are given the opportunity to ask questions while

being prompted to THINK (is the question True, Helpful, Inspiring, Necessary and Kind) to either

the student or presenter. There is currently no significant research which has been done on

school reentry programs specific to burns, so the long-term impacts of school reentries on burn

survivor’s psychosocial adjustment is unclear.