The child life assessment scale: balancing individual performance with economic and administrative imperatives

The Child Life Assessment Scale (CLAS) is designed to assess the performance of child life personnel. This study surveyed users of the CLAS to ascertain its effectiveness and pattern of use. Results indicate a high degree of satisfaction with the content of the CLAS and with its ease of use. A total of sixty-eight percent of users reported that employees were "very enthusiastic" about being evaluated by the CLAS: only 9% reported unfavorable responses. Of the responders, seventy-two percent reported adopting some or all of the CLAS. Implications for child life programs in light of recent changes in our health care system are discussed.