June 2018

Since first hearing about trauma-informed care in 2014, and then setting out on a journey to bring this education to my community, I’m constantly amazed at how this message is being embraced in Johnson City, Tennessee. After partnering with Dr. Andi Clements from the East Tennessee State University Psychology Department, in a little over 2 years we have trained over 2,500 professionals! This growing number of passionate advocates includes staff within the public schools, the state...

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) can have extraordinarily damaging impacts on a growing child. The National Association for Children of Addiction (NACoA) has a keen understanding of such childhood impacts based on 35 years of work with children who have suffered from parental addiction, and our grounding in a growing body of research related to childhood trauma. NACoA’s Board of Directors and staff are populated with experts from a variety of health, legal, and allied professions...

The Greater Bay Area Child Abuse Prevention Council Coalition www.bayareapreventchildabuse.org June 21, 2018 IT IS CHILD ABUSE, NOT IMMIGRATION POLICY The systemic separation of children from their families is government sanctioned child abuse. As we first learned about the immigration policy being enacted on our southern border, we were concerned. Because we can no longer stand by, we must add our voices to the doctors, clergy, parents, and Americans who are outraged at these actions. On...

The fact that rural, economically disadvantaged parts of the country broke heavily for the Republican candidate in the 2016 election is well known. But Medicare data indicate that voters in areas that went for Trump weren't just hurting economically — many of them were receiving prescriptions for opioid painkillers. The findings were published Friday in the medical journal JAMA Network Open.Researchers found a geographic relationship between support for Trump and prescriptions for opioid...

“Maya Angelou’s book, ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’ was definitely that pivotal moment for me,” Sharrica said. “I think about how she responded to the tragedy in her life by turning in. It was profound to me because when you don’t have anything or anybody else – you can turn in.” How does one find peace within themselves? There is a lot of discussion right now about mindful meditation, communing with nature and that old standby, the power of positive thinking. But sometimes it’s hard to...

The Trump administration is making good on a pledge to remap the entire executive branch, announcing a sweeping plan on Thursday that would reorder federal agencies. A draft proposal that circulated widely this week would eliminate some cabinet-level agencies and consolidate others, privatize the nation’s mortgage securities market, and introduce a new federal agency with the word “welfare” in its name. The White House’s plans are so broad—and the changes to public assistance programs so...

The happiest places in the world are those where enlightened leaders shifted their focus from economic development to promoting quality of life. “The biggest predictors of happiness are tolerance, equality, and healthy life expectancy,” Dan Buettner, a National Geographic writer and the author of The Blue Zones of Happiness, said Saturday at the Aspen Ideas Festival, which is cohosted by The Aspen Institute and The Atlantic. Buettner’s work found that Denmark, Costa Rica, and Singapore were...

The Radical Monarchs started when Lupita, a fourth grader, wanted to join a Girl Scouts troop. Her mom thought it was a great idea but was concerned that Lupita, who is Mexican American, would be the only girl of color in the troop. Lupita’s mom asked herself: What would it look like to create a social justice troop that focused on girls of color? She casually mentioned the idea to Lupita—and the budding activist would not let it go, begging her mom to get it started. Lupita and her mom...

Last month, I expressed some skepticism about a new study cited by Attorney General Jeff Sessions that blames something called the “ACLU effect” for the 2016 spike in homicides in Chicago. The theory is that an agreement between the city and the civil liberties organization resulted in fewer stops and stop-and-frisks by Chicago police, which caused an increase in violence. You can read the post to see why I don’t find that convincing. So what did cause the increase? And why hasn’t crime...

The Trump administration's “zero tolerance” immigration policy, which led to the separation of children from adults who crossed the border illegally, has fueled a national outcry. Sign up for our ongoing coverage. Send story ideas to tips@texastribune.org. MORE IN THIS SERIES It’s been nearly two months since the Trump administration announced its new “zero tolerance” policy regarding illegal immigration, which federal officials say has led to about 2,000 undocumented immigrant children in...

Every 107 seconds, someone in America is sexually assaulted. The vast majority are adolescent women. Each of us can learn something and do something safely to make a huge difference to reduce risk, prevent trauma, and help more people heal. While victims include men, adult women and children, sexual assault is most prevalent among women of high school and college age: 91% of the victims of rape and sexual assault are female; 9% are male (1) 44% of victims are under age 18 (high school age)...

Pediatricians and school nurses are powerful partners when we intentionally collaborate to improve the continuity of care in the populations we serve. It is the intentionality of relationship building that can bear the most fruitful outcomes to improve the health and well-being of our most vulnerable population, our children. We are far more effective working in concert than in our silos. School communities are looking for guidance, answers, and action to address the explosion of...