Tonight's picture was taken in August of 2007. This is a follow up photo to the one I posted last night. We took Mattie to the La Brea Tar Pits and after exploring the Museum and Tar Pits, Mattie loved to walk around and climb on the prehistoric creatures they had outside. These creatures were designed for just these purposes, for kids to climb and interact with them, as well as appreciate their impressive size.
Quote of the day: I have been impressed with the urgency of doing. Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Being willing is not enough; we must do. ~ Leonardo da Vinci
This spring, Peter and I were invited to serve on the Family Advisory Board for The Center for Pediatric Traumatic Stress: http://www.chop.edu/centers-programs/center-pediatric-traumatic-stress. The Center for Pediatric Traumatic Stress (CPTS) at The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia addresses medical trauma in the lives of children and families. Founded in 2002 as a multidisciplinary intervention development center within the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, CPTS has recently received additional funding by the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to further its work in preventing and treating medical traumatic stress in healthcare settings.
Peter and I are NO STRANGERS to Medical Traumatic Stress. This was something Mattie dealt with as a result of his treatment. In fact, Peter and I still contend with aspects of these issues, especially when walking through the hallways of Georgetown University Hospital or during scans and procedures for ourselves.
Pediatric medical traumatic stress is a set of psychological and physiological responses children and their families have to:
- Pain
- Injury
- Serious illness
- Medical procedures
- Invasive or frightening treatment experiences in medical settings
These responses may include symptoms of arousal, re-experiencing and avoidance. Symptoms can vary in intensity and are often related to the child's or family member's subjective experience.
Recently, the Center contacted Peter and asked him whether he would submit an article for their blog. Peter has a reputation in our psychosocial circle for being the social media guru. So it was no surprise to me that these professionals reached out to Peter. He can effectively write and he is technologically savvy, so I am happy Peter had the opportunity to promote and chat on the blog about the National Psychosocial Standards of Care that will be published this Fall in the journal of Pediatric Blood and Cancer! Mattie Miracle had the vision to establish such Standards back in 2012. Standards which we felt needed to be created to ensure that all children with cancer and their families would have access to a minimum level of psychological, social, and emotional care from the time of diagnosis, through survivorship or end of life and bereavement care.
To see the blog posting hosted by Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, go to:
https://www.healthcaretoolbox.org/latest-news/22-e-emotional-support/383-psychosocial-care-for-children-with-cancer-and-their-families.html
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