The present report is based on a work accomplished in the pediatric wards of the Instituto Fernandes Figueira/FIOCRUZ, Rio de Janeiro, aiming to observe and to fortify the attachment between mother and her hospitalized child, through the act of playing. The practical work is described established on its theoretical basis. Some considerations on the role of playing in the mother-child relationship under a hospital context are presented.
mother-child attachment; child hospitalization; playing