“Behind the Mask” initiative shows smiling faces at McMaster Children’s Hospital

A team at McMaster Children’s Hospital is making sure children know there’s a smiling face behind the mask.

With masks and other PPE required at hospitals, staff wanted to provide some comfort and reassurance to kids.

“Although we need to wear masks to keep us safe, it can be scary for kids,” says Jennifer Cooke, a child life specialist at the hospital.

“We wanted to find ways to make what we were needing to wear a bit more pediatric friendly and allow kids to feel that sense of safety.”

The child life team began the “Behind the Mask” project.

The team created pins with pictures of their unmasked, smiling faces to wear on their shirts, lanyard or scrub caps.

Word quickly spread through the hospital.

They’ve made close to 200 name tags for staff, while other departments have made their own pins.