Go
to Newsletter Archive index
|
the citizens' information source on children's issues May 2002 Newsletter IN
THIS ISSUE:
Treatment
and Intervention: The Essentials to Healing
MULTI-SYSTEMIC THERAPY (MST) One effective treatment strategy for traumatized children is the "social-ecological" model, or the "Multisystemic" Therapy (MST) approach. This therapeutic model is based on an understanding of the child as inextricably linked to family, community, and school. It argues that in order to meet the mental health needs of traumatized children, careful attention must be paid to the child's environment and the "social-ecology" which has broken down in many different ways. Children who have been abused often display a broad range of emotions and behaviors including fear, aggression and dissociation. A core theme of the MST approach is that trauma from the abuse or neglect causes a "dysregulated" nervous system and an accompanying family and social environment that cannot contain the dysregulation. An initial goal of treatment is to create calm and stability and to help build cognitive structures in the traumatized child that help him place discriminating thought between a stimulus and his response to it. This is accomplished by helping a child first become aware of his feelings, then label his feelings and finally, develop strategies that regulate feelings once they are labeled. By developing these cognitive supports, children come to learn that they have new, more positive choices in their behavior. When examining the child's environment under this model, questions are raised about the child's safety and basic needs, to what degree the overall environment is stressful, and whether the child is in the right educational setting. Therapeutic contacts with the child and his or her family emphasize the positive, and use strengths in the child's environment as levers for change. Interventions target specific and well-defined issues. Everyone involved becomes aware of the specific problems and their roles in perpetuating or solving them. An understanding develops about the sequences of behavior among the various systems in the child's life, e.g. how an intrusive symptom of the trauma can impact on school issues that can then influence a specific family response to the child. The interventions eventually promote responsible and therapeutically appropriate behavior and decrease irresponsible behaviors in all these settings. MST, currently
being used with violent and aggressive children, traumatized
children, homicidal and substance abusing children, has the
following core components:
MST OUTCOME DATA Data from
outcome studies are encouraging. In one study involving 200
chronic juvenile offenders, youth who received MST showed: In a randomized
trial of MST versus clinic-based parent training among DSS families
with abuse and neglect histories, results showed: In another study of severely traumatized children, 113 children and adolescents were approved for emergency psychiatric hospitalization. Youth entering the study met the criteria for severe emotional disturbance, and utilized multiple service agencies, including mental health, juvenile justice and social services. A randomized trial of MST versus inpatient hospitalization and "treatment as usual" was conducted. The results were stunning. -The MST population had greater improvements and exhibited fewer symptoms; -Family structure and cohesion was improved; -School attendance improved; -No additional hospitalization was warranted for 57 percent of the MST group. Overall days of hospitalization in the MST group were reduced by 72 percent, and days in other out-of-home placements were reduced by 49 percent. It has been estimated that one team of 3 MST therapists can effectively treat 50 families a year at a cost of $5,000 per family. The annual cost of an entire program is about $250,000.[230] When considering the short-term saving of preventing out-of-home placements, residential care, psychiatric hospitalizations, as well as the long-term savings of preventing imprisonment, substance abuse and chronic medical and mental illness - MST is an approach that can document significant success and savings. TRAUMA AND MOVEMENT THERAPIES Psychodrama and other social group rituals involving movement and imagination are some of the oldest ways in which individuals and communities have historically dealt with trauma. These approaches are now being used as formal interventions to assist traumatized children. As we have seen, children who are victimized by trauma are often unable to develop or experience mastery and sense of self, or to separate themselves psychologically from the violent physical experiences that produced their trauma. New research suggests that the neurobiological effects of trauma are as real as their emotional consequences. The body appears to "keep score" of traumatic memories and is a theatre where the memory of trauma is often reenacted. Research by van der Kolk and others has major implications for the role that physical education, sports, and art can play in healing and promoting self-confidence and mastery. By creating what van der Kolk refers to as "islands of competence," traumatized children can develop new coping strategies and behavioral skills that can promote healing, something, he argues, that may not be achieved through traditional talking therapies alone. FOR MORE INFORMATION about healing our children, MCC’s recommendations for change, and source reference notes for the above spotlighted section, please see “A State Call To Action: Working to End Child Abuse and Neglect in Massachusetts,” Section IV: Healing Our Children [http://www.masskids.org/cta/cta_iv.html] The complete report is available online at http://www.masskids.org/cta/
Human
Rights Tribunal on Domestic Violence and Child Custody All are invited to the Human Rights Tribunal on Domestic Violence and Child Custody on Thursday, May 9, 2002, in the Grand Staircase of the Massachusetts State House from 10 to 11:30 AM. The Tribunal is part of the Battered Mothers' Testimony Project. Battered mothers from throughout the Commonwealth will give spoken public testimony about abuses they and their children have suffered through family court litigation, and voice their recommendations for change. Additional speakers, including Senator Jacques, will focus on the applicability of international human rights standards and laws to the abuses identified by the mothers. All are invited to attend. Please come show your support for these courageous women. For more information, please call the Battered Mothers' Testimony Project at 781-283-2509/2548.
From
Awareness To Action The effort is being launched on June 7th with a one-day conference, "From Awareness to Action: The Central Massachusetts Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Campaign." The conference is aimed at increasing awareness of SBS in Central Massachusetts, and presenting a program designed to educate new parents about SBS. Following the conference, the Campaign hopes to initiate the prevention program in all the Worcester County birthing hospitals. SBS is one of the most serious forms of child abuse. Parents or caregivers who violently shake a baby often do so out of frustration that the child will not stop crying, not realizing the damage they are causing. When a baby is shaken violently, the baby's head whips back and forth, causing the blood vessels in the brain and eyes to tear and bleed. Violent shaking can cause severe neurological damage, seizures, mental retardation, blindness, developmental delays, and death. One-third of SBS victims die. The Campaign's newborn parent education plan is being modeled after a successful program implemented in Buffalo, NY, that has seen the reduction of SBS incidents by about 75%. Originated by Dr. Mark Diaz, a pediatric neurosurgeon, the Buffalo program includes showing new parents a video about the dangers of shaking an infant, and requesting that the parents sign an affidavit confirming that they understand the risk of SBS. Dr. Diaz will be speaking at the June 7th conference. Also at the conference, Dr. Robert Reece, acclaimed child abuse expert and pediatrician, will discuss how to recognize the clinical symptoms of SBS. The Central Massachusetts SBS Prevention Campaign believes it can provide leadership in SBS prevention, by sharing Worcester County's successful strategies with other Massachusetts counties, and by advocating strongly for a sustained statewide effort. Funding for the Campaign has been provided through a grant from the Massachusetts Medical Society and Alliance Charitable Foundation. For more information about the Central Massachusetts SBS Prevention Campaign, please contact Jetta Bernier at 617-742-8555, ext. 2, or jetta@masskids.org.
Wine
Taste 2002 at Hammond Castle Tickets are $100 per person. For more information or to purchase tickets, please visit our web site, www.masskids.org, or contact Joseph Tegan, at joseph@masskids.org or 617-742-8555, ext. 5.
Center
for Effective Discipline on the Web The web site provides guidelines for parents and professionals about disciplining children without hitting, teaching children self-discipline, and encouraging non-violence in children. EPOCH's site examines the myths behind spanking and disciplining with punishment, answers questions for parents about child behavior, and offers extensive supporting facts about why corporal punishment doesn't work. Current laws regarding corporal punishment nationwide, and an assortment of articles and documents on the subject of corporal punishment, are also available on the site. The Center for Effective Discipline is a not-for-profit organization that provides educational information to the public on the effects of corporal punishment of children and alternatives to its use. It is currently the headquarters for and coordinates both the National Coalition to Abolish Corporal Punishment in Schools (NCACPS), and End Physical Punishment of Children (EPOCH-USA). NCACPS is comprised of individuals and organizations that share information on the progress of banning corporal punishment with the public and the media. EPOCH-USA, which is affiliated with EPOCH-Worldwide, is a multi-national federation committed to ending corporal punishment of children through education and legal reform. The Center for Effective Discipline's web site is: http://www.stophitting.com.
Sexual
Abuse Prevention -- Discovery Health Channel will show the documentary "Close to Home" hosted by David Schwimmer on May 19th at 8PM, and will premier "Sexual Predators" immediately following, at 10PM.
---------------------------------------------------------- The Massachusetts Campaign for Children is a program of Massachusetts Citizens for Children. Its mission is to build and maintain a statewide, grassroots membership organization, which can then become a powerful voice for the children of our state. The Campaign's goal is to engage in non-partisan electoral and legislative actions at the local and state levels that promote the well-being of all Massachusetts children, youth, and their families, and help us move children's issues to the center of every political arena. We believe that all our children have the right: to be free from poverty; to get the medical and preventive care they need; to learn in quality child care and school settings; to be safe from abuse, neglect, and violence; and to live in caring families and healthy communities. Please share this newsletter with your friends and colleagues, and urge them to join with us to become a powerful voice for the children of our state. We urge you, too, to join with us, or renew your membership if you are already a member. The Campaign for Children is a non-profit independent advocacy organization, and we receive no state or federal funding. We rely entirely on the generosity of our members and donors. Please visit www.masskids.org to join online; or call 800-CHILDREN for a free information packet. * * * *
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * To subscribe to this newsletter please visit our web site at www.masskids.org, or send an email to subscribe@masskids.org. To unsubscribe please send an email to unsubscribe@masskids.org.
Go to Newsletter Archive index
|
Massachusetts
Citizens for Children
14 Beacon Street, Suite 706 ~ Boston, MA 02108
phone: 617-742-8555 ~ fax: 617-742-7808 ~ www.masskids.org