Phila. Forum Highlights Growing Incidence of PTSD in City's Children
By John McDevitt
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Post-traumatic stress disorder, "PTSD," is a malady commonly associated with war veterans.
But children living in Philadelphia's most violent neighborhoods are showing signs of it, too.
Today, the US attorney in Philadelphia held a forum on the traumatic impact of violence.
Hundreds of professionals in the criminal justice, education, and social services fields attended the gathering, titled "Essentials of Trauma-Informed Care."
Among the speakers was Dr. Sandra Bloom, co-director of the Center for Nonviolence and Social Justice (at right in photo below), part of the school of public health at Drexel University.
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Bloom talked about PTSD in children.
"We have lots of children in Philadelphia who are suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder because they have experienced trauma and witnessed other people being killed. That's one of the definitions of trauma. It's a major public health problem," she said.
Bloom says the aim of the forum was to give those in attendance a better understanding of trauma, adversity, and stress, and how it affects the brains and bodies of those they work with.