Dealing with a loss can cause traumatic experience for anyone who is affected by it first or second hand. For parents, losing a child could be the most tragic and detrimental experience of their lives. Coping with such tragic loss can effects one’s mental and physical health depending on the resources available and received. Individuals who experience trauma like losing a loved one may face emotional as well as physical health concerns. Dr. Bea from Cleveland Clinic stated on ABC news that parents who have lost a child are predisposed to destructive life choices like alcoholism, substance abuse, suicide, putting them at higher risk of low life expectancy (ABC news). The life-threatening maladaptive coping strategies can lead to adverse health outcomes for grieving parents. They need trauma-informed support system so they can learn and use healthy coping strategies. Healing Helping Hand, which will be abbreviated to HHH, can be an effective project for the grieving parents of Alachua county in their healing journey. This project will be committed to ensure the safety of the participants to minimize any potential exposure to triggers and re-traumatization (Trauma-Informed Philanthropy).
The target population in this project are in a grieving state of mind and this could be one of the most vulnerable time for any affected individuals. This project will be committed to ensure the safety of the participants to minimize any potential exposure to triggers and retraumatization (Trauma-Informed Philanthropy). Self-efficacy will also be addressed for grieving individuals to prevent them from adopting or continuing self-destructive behaviors.
Using the CDC’s Socio-Ecological Model, this project addresses the need for a trauma informed support system at an individual level for affected participants (CDC). Each participants have had experienced loss of a child first or second hand in their lives which could have affected them at a personal level. Moving beyond the individual level, this project also invites a focus on interpersonal relationships, especially if loss of a child has affected multiple people in the family. This may include couples who are grieving for the loss of their child or for single parents, potential support system from family and friends will be revisited. Workshops in this project will include learning tools to reconnect with your partners and support system and team building activities for communication skills. Although the primary goal of this project is to provide trauma-informed supportive care for grieving parents, it does not limit itself from higher potential. When a community itself becomes trauma-informed, individuals who are suffering adverse health outcomes could thrive from available support and community members can become more informed in providing trauma care. HHH intends to take an effective initiative that addresses public health issue and builds a trauma informed community.
With the use of public health framework, this project can help reduce the adverse health outcome for the grieving parents and help reduce the possibility of self-destructive behaviors. An individual who has poor coping skills or lacks needed resources could engage in self-destructive behaviors such as alcohol and substance abuse, risky behaviors and unhealthy emotional display. By adopting a public health framework, this project will look into various factors that has an impact on a grieving individual’s health outcome. At a primary prevention level, this project will validate the trauma that losing a child can have on a parent and also that the grieving process is different for each individual (Trauma-Informed Philanthropy). The individuals will also understand the health outcomes of emotional and psychological stress caused by trauma. As per secondary prevention, parents who have lost a child will be identified and reached out at UF children’s hospitals also individuals who are seeking services like grieve support group will be redirected to this project by the hospital staff members. The interested individuals will be provided with the information on the project. On a tertiary level, the participating individuals will be able to receive services as well as learn coping skills to better their quality of life. This will include self-care activities, mind fullness, team building activities and referrals to counseling if further needs are addressed.
References:
“Pediatric Bereavement.” UF Health, ufhealth.org/uf-health-palliative-care/pediatric-bereavement.
“Trauma-Informed Philanthropy.” Trauma-Informed Philanthropy | ACES Philadelphia,
www.philadelphiaaces.org/TraumaInformedPhilanthropy.
Mairi Harper, Rory C. O’Connor & Ronan E. O’Carroll (2014) Factors associated with grief and depression following the loss of a child: A multivariate analysis, Psychology, Health & Medicine, 19:3,247-252, DOI: 10.1080/13548506.2013.811274
ABC News, ABC News Network, abcnews.go.com/Health/grieving-parents-risk-early-death-study/story?id=14467734.
“Chapter 1: Models and Frameworks | Principles of Community Engagement | ATSDR.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, www.atsdr.cdc.gov/communityengagement/pce_models.html.
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