At the Cobbs Creek Clinic in West Philadelphia, Dr. Roy Wade relies on some of the same tools every pediatrician uses for exams ā blood pressure cuffs, a stethoscope, and, of course, tongue depressors.
He also uses particular questions to get at something that few doctors try to measure: childhood adversity.
Wade is working on his own screening tool, a short list of questions that would give every young patient at the clinic an "adversity score." The list will include indicators of abuse and neglect (which pediatricians already are on the lookout for) and also check for signs of poverty, racial discrimination or bullying.
Wade wants to take action because research suggests that the stress of a tough childhood can raise the risk for later disease, mental illness and addiction. The American Academy of Pediatrics put out a call in 2011 to doctors to address what the Academy characterizes as "toxic stress" among young patients.
Of course, not every kid with a rough childhood will suffer long-term effects. But asking every patient (or their parents) about adversity in their lives, Wade says, could help identify the kids who are at higher risk.
[For more of this story go to http://listen.sdpb.org/post/he...s-legacy-start-young]
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