"Young healers": chronically ill adolescents as child life assistants

An innovative summer program that employs chronically ill adolescents as child life assistants is described. This program helps the chronically ill teens better cope with their chronic illness while at the same time allowing them to be "helpers" to other adolescents. Funding, supervision, and dealing with problems are discussed as they relate to this unique approach to providing child life services. The authors feel that this program directly addresses three areas of concern and stress in the lives of the chronically ill adolescents: (a) poor body image, (b) social isolation, and (c) issues of self-control.