A collaborative approach to whole person care through the Loma Linda University Medical Simulation Center
Michelle A. Minyard-Widmann, MS, CCLS, has been part of Loma Linda University Health for more than thirty years. She began her career as a Child Life Specialist at Loma Linda University Children's Hospital in 1994 and later helped start the Child Life Specialist MS program in 2004. She now serves as Assistant Professor in the Department of Counseling and Family Sciences and Director of the Child Life Specialist MS program in the Loma Linda University (LLU) School of Behavioral Health.
When I asked Michelle to share more about the LLU Medical Simulation Center (also commonly known as the "Sim Lab") and how Child Life became involved, she explained that Child Life has been part of the interprofessional education for probably about 15 years now. About a year ago, she shared, Dr. Paige Stevens, a Pediatric Intensive Care Unit attending physician in the LLU School of Medicine, reached out with an innovative idea to develop what is now called the "Interprofessional Whole Person Care at End-of-Life Simulation."
Interprofessional Whole Person Care at End-of-Life Simulation
A large part of working in health is not only supporting healing but also learning how to be present in the sacred moments when life is coming to an end. Although death is a natural part of the human experience, it remains one of the most difficult times for everyone involved.
Michelle shared that Dr. Stevens' holistic vision for creating an end-of-life simulation captures a biopsychosocial-spiritual approach to care. It demonstrates a collaborative, action-oriented model that brings together the School of Medicine, School of Nursing, School of Religion, and School of Behavioral Health at Loma Linda University.
Students are shown the "End of Life Simulation 1: Introduction" before participating. In the video, they learn about the story of Jordan "Jojo" Klene and his family. Jojo's parents, John and Monica, and his physician share how every interaction in those final hours left a lasting imprint—what Monica described as "wet cement." Each gesture, word, and expression of care became part of the family's memory. The video prepares students to enter the simulation with presence and empathy, reminding them that end-of-life care involves both clinical skill and human connection rooted in compassion, humility, and gratitude.
The first End-of-Life Simulation was launched in June 2025 after a year of collaboration among multiple schools. On average, two simulation sessions are held each month, with each lasting around two hours. On some days, back-to-back sessions are scheduled.
Child Life at the Sim Lab
Child Life Specialists bring deep knowledge of child development into hospital and healthcare settings. They use play, education, and emotional support to help children and families cope with medical experiences. Their work also extends to guiding parents, siblings, and caregivers, recognizing that a child's healing is deeply connected to the family system. The profession is supported by the Association of Child Life Professionals (ACLP), which helps ensure that both students and certified specialists are equipped to provide developmentally informed, family-centered care.
Before joining the simulation, Child Life students complete an online training with videos, readings, and reflection activities. This preparation helps them think through how to communicate with families, manage their emotions, and understand their role within a team of healthcare professionals.
In the Sim Lab, students have the opportunity to practice these skills in a safe and supportive space. They work alongside their interdisciplinary team, responding to a family whose child has died. Child Life students engage directly with trained actors portraying grieving parents, allowing them to experience the emotional weight and interpersonal realities of loss in real time. Michelle shared that these paid actors are "skilled performers" and elicit emotional reactions from students. This helps students practice how to stay calm, compassionate, and grounded as they support families through moments of shock and sorrow.
When I asked Michelle how Child Life fits within the biopsychosocial-spiritual model, she explained that their work primarily focuses on the psychological and social aspects of healing. Within the simulation, this helps families find emotional safety and connection in the first moments of grief. Michelle described how students practice legacy-building activities, such as helping families create handprints, collect a small piece of the child's hair for remembrance, or record the child's heart tones to place inside a memory bear. They also offer grief resources, like children's books and support group information, and model grounding and attending skills to stay emotionally present with families.
As I listened to Michelle, I felt a deep sense of gratitude for Child Life Specialists and students who hold space for families and children as they navigate medical procedures, trauma, healing, and even moments of loss and grief. We often do not see all the individuals who are essential to healing, and this work truly embodies the integrative whole that we value and honor here at Loma Linda University Health.
A Shared Mission of Healing
Healing is most powerful when it happens together. The End-of-Life Simulation reflects Loma Linda University's mission "To Make Man Whole" by uniting the physical, emotional, social, and spiritual dimensions of care. Within this experience, Child Life's contribution stands out as a reminder that healing extends beyond the biological aspects of care. It includes presence, empathy, and the willingness to hold space for families in their most vulnerable moments.
"We've really focused on that interdisciplinary, cross-campus collaboration," Michelle shared. "In healthcare, you're going to have every discipline here on campus in some way or another. You're going to interface with them somehow, so learning to work together here helps prepare students for what collaboration really looks like in practice."
Through the Sim Lab, that collaboration becomes a living example of LLU's values of wholeness, teamwork, and compassion. Students from medicine, nursing, religion, and behavioral health come together as one team, learning how to respond to loss not just clinically, but relationally and spiritually. For Child Life students, it is an opportunity to model the psychosocial elements of care—helping families build legacy, find meaning, and begin to heal.
The simulation reminds every participant that to truly make man whole is to honor every part of the human experience, even the moments of grief. It is in these shared spaces of learning and compassion that the values of Loma Linda University come to life.
Interviewed and written by Audrey I. Perez, AMFT, Systems, Families, & Couples PhD student