Making History - Akron Children's Hospital

grants
The team launching the Center
for the Treatment and Study of
Adverse Childhood Events includes
(left to right): Patricia Seifert, PhD;
Robin Tener, PhD; Sumru Bilge-
Johnson, MD; Sarah Ostrowski, PhD;
Melissa Peace, MSSA, LISW-S;
and Norman Christopher, MD.
Supporting children, families touched by trauma
As adults, we are shocked and saddened by
scenes of violence and devastation in the news –
the recent shooting in Newtown, Conn., the
destruction caused by super storm Sandy and
stories of political upheaval from around the world.
But what about our children? How do they process
these events? How can we help them cope?
With the launch of the Center for the Treatment
and Study of Adverse Childhood Events, Akron
Children’s is shedding light on these questions.
Thanks to a four-year, $1.6-million federal
grant, we will provide services and support to
children and families who have experienced
psychological trauma.
“Tragic shootings in Copley, Chardon and now
Connecticut reinforce the importance of trauma
training for teachers, doctors, nurses and others
who work with children,” said Norm Christopher,
MD, chair of the Department of Pediatrics and
author of numerous studies on childhood trauma.
“This grant will also enable us to deliver ageappropriate
and research-based responses to the
death of a high school student, the chronic illness
of a sibling, or domestic violence, as they can be
equally devastating for loved ones.”
The goal of the center is to provide leadership,
training and consultative services for childhood
traumatic stress for northeast Ohio. It will create
a trauma-focused network of care, which will
improve access to treatment and help identify
children who have been exposed to adverse
events.
The grant also allows Akron Children’s to join
the National Child Traumatic Stress Network
(NCTSN). Established by Congress in 2000,
NCTSN includes more than 150 child trauma
centers that provide care and resources for a
wide range of traumatic experiences.
Melissa Peace, a social worker who spent 10
years leading the Summit County Children Who
Witness Violence Program, will serve as project
director.
According to Peace, her team will begin by
creating a community trauma advisory council
and rolling out trauma-focused cognitive behavior
therapy for clinical staff, community mental
health providers and school personnel. This
evidence-based approach helps children create
and share “trauma narratives” to cope with their
emotions.
The grant also has a research component,
led by pediatric psychologist Sarah Ostrowski,
PhD, research program director for the
NeuroDevelopmental Science Center.
“As a member of the network, we will have a direct
connection to the experts and most current
research in childhood traumatic stress,” said
Ostrowski, who will serve as principal investigator.
“Through our own research, we will be contributing
to that body of knowledge as well.”
AKRONCHILDRENS.ORG/GIVING 23