Articles in this section:
NCTSN Response to the Hurricanes
NCTSN Marks 9/11 Anniversary with Local Programs
Now You Can Get Your Data Back
These activities included:
- Screening displaced children and families in the Houston Astrodome, the coliseum in Jackson, Mississippi, and numerous shelters across the United States
- Training local mental health professionals and paraprofessionals in the newly launched Psychological First Aid Field Operations Guide developed by the NCTSN Terrorism and Disaster Branch and the National Center for PTSD
- Developing extensive Web-based informational materials for parents, school personnel, first responders, and child welfare workers on topics including helping very young children, and working with families that have been displaced
- Providing specialized training on child sexual abuse and child traumatic grief.
Many Network staff participated directly in first responder efforts and trainings in the affected regions. These Network efforts were conducted in collaboration with federal, state, and community partnerships that have been forged over the life of the National Child Traumatic Stress Network. Partners included state disaster mental health coordinators, the Department of Justice, the Department of Education, the Child Welfare League of America, SAMHSA, the American Red Cross, and the United Way. Many professional organizations also partnered with NCTSN Centers in their disaster response efforts.
The US Department of Education coordinated meetings with school district personnel in cities
across the gulf region where there was a large number of displaced children and families. At the meetings it was apparent that teachers and students were doing a wonderful job of integrating new children into the classroom, but that further collaboration between schools and mental health professionals would be vital to the recovery over time.
As we move from the disaster response phase into the longer-term recovery phase, it is noteworthy that the Network launched an intervention protocol and training program in Florida for Enhanced Services, a 10-session trauma-focused intermediate intervention for children and families who continue to have difficulties after last year’s successive hurricanes.
Other news: We now have over 1,200 cases in the InForm system; about a third of those cases have follow-up information. Thank you to everyone who is participating. The Intercultural Child Traumatic Stress Center (Oregon) was the first center to successfully transfer their client data to the Data Core. These data will be integrated into the Core Data Set database. This activity takes a great deal of time and effort from center staff and we want everyone to know how much we appreciate it. Other centers on the verge of transferring their data include Delpelchin Children’s Center, Kennedy Krieger, and the Chadwick Center for Children and Families.
Important IRB reminder: Don’t forget to contact your IRB and update them with your data collection progress. All IRB’s require annual updates. Inform them of any significant changes you have made, if any, since your original submission. Check with your IRB for a reporting format that would be best.