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The summer break is upon us and right now parents and teachers are taking a much-deserved deep breath before jumping into the new school year. One of the programs Echo provides each summer is the salary point Trauma- Informed Compassionate Classrooms training to help educators meet their professional development requirements and to give them the space to think about the classroom environment they would optimally like to create while not yet inundated with the day-to- day demands of the...

Article written by Sandra L. Bloom, MD In 1881, President James A. Garfield was shot by an assassin—one bullet to his arm and another to his back. Physicians rushed to care for him, believing that he had survivable injuries. The discovery of microbes as the origin of infectious processes was still new, and although Joseph Lister’s pioneering work in antisepsis was known to American doctors, and Lister himself had visited America in 1876, few doctors had confidence in it, and none of the...

The first contact with the juvenile justice system presents an enormous opportunity for the court, court personnel, attorneys and service providers to impact the lives of children and their families. In many states, first contact happens within the context of the Child in Need of Services (CHINS), Families in Need of Services (FINS) and Persons in Need of Services (PINS). In all cases, the “need of services” is paramount. First contact with the Juvenile Court must be taken seriously, and the...

Transforming Care, The Commonwealth Fund’s newest publication, focuses on new models of care, payment approaches, and patient engagement strategies that have the potential to reshape our delivery system to better meet the needs of the nation’s sickest and most vulnerable patients. Published quarterly, the newsletter is a source of innovative ideas for health system leaders, clinicians, and policymakers. [For more go to ...

Philadelphia University Certificate of Advanced Studies in Trauma Counseling Philadelphia University’s Community and Trauma Counseling Program offers a 4-course certificate for master’s-level professionals. The Certificate of Advanced Studies in Trauma Counseling provides an advanced understanding of trauma theory, principles, tools and strategies that support trauma-informed practice with adults and children. A new cohort will begin late August with enrollment in the first course in the...

The job of the police officer is one of the most stressful occupations in the world. Research has shown time and time again that police officer occupational stress is directly related to higher rates of heart disease, divorce, sick days taken, alcohol abuse, and major psychological illnesses such as Acute Stress Disorder, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Depression, and Anxiety Disorders. Stress for police officers consists of an accumulation of exposure to horrific events witnessed and...

T he Oklahoma Advisory Committee to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights has published a study examining the civil rights impact of school discipline and juvenile-justice policies. The study explains how excessive and disparate suspensions of students “may lead to high rates of juvenile incarceration” — particularly among youth of color, boys and students with disabilities — in what has become known as the school-to-prison pipeline. In its report released this month, the committee issued a...

The Great Recession rewrote the American dream. Millions of Americans who thought they’d captured the flag instead got swallowed up by a national mortgage-foreclosure crisis. Many of those former homeowners are now renters, competing in ever-more concentrated job markets for ever-scarcer affordable housing. So perhaps it comes as no surprise that most Americans say that the housing crisis never ended. In fact, one in five Americans say that the worst is yet to come, according to a new poll...

Andy Stern has been part of the U.S. labor movement for decades. He was formerly the president of the Service Employees International Union, which represents nearly 2 million American workers. During his tenure at the SEIU, he was hailed as “the nation’s most politically influential union president,” which made his resignation in 2010 something of a surprise. Stern’s new book, Raising the Floor, details his views on the changing nature of work in America and explains why Stern has come...

Traumatic experiences in childhood increase the risk of developing behavioral and psychiatric disorders later in life. It is also known that the consequences of a trauma can likewise be observed in the children of people affected even if those children have themselves not experienced any trauma. However, childhood trauma in some conditions can also help individuals deal better with difficult situations later in life. This ability, too, is passed onto following generations. These findings...

The mass shooting at an Orlando gay club this month killed 49 people , wounded at least 50 others, and, in the minds of many within the LGBTQ community, violated a sacred space. In his comments following the tragedy, President Barack Obama called the Pulse nightclub, the site of the massacre, a “sanctuary,” a place to sing, dance, “and most importantly, to be who you truly are” that had been violated by a horrific act of violence. While a hideous reminder of unvarnished hate, the shooting...

Bullying and cyberbullying are major risk factors for teen suicide. And both the bullies and their victims are at risk. That's according to a report from the American Academy of Pediatrics that urges pediatricians and family doctors to routinely screen teenagers for suicide risks. "Pediatricians need to be aware of the problem overall," says Benjamin Shain , a child and adolescent psychiatrist and lead author of the report published online Monday in the journalPediatrics. "They should be...