Saturday, December 21, 2024
12/21/2024
The population of focus for the project, Boston Services for Trauma And Resources for families (Boston STAR), consists of children from birth to 17 years of age and their families who have experienced traumatic events and who access primary care at Boston Medical Center (BMC) or its 12 affiliated community health centers (CHCs). Our geographic catchment area is Suffolk County, MA, home to Boston, where BMC and the CHCs form the backbone of Boston’s safety net health care system. BMC and BHN serve disproportionate numbers of low-income and racial and ethnic minority residents. Half of our patients have incomes at or below federal poverty, and 70% are racial and ethnic minorities. Up to 56,692 children in Suffolk County have trauma exposures, and as many as 5,953 suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The children we serve within BMC and the CHCs are at increased risk of experiencing extreme poverty, child abuse and neglect, domestic violence, community violence, and other forms of trauma; yet services to this population are severely limited by the lack of NCTSN Level III providers in Boston (Gap 1). Further, few pediatricians possess the knowledge or skill to systematically screen for and address trauma symptoms in primary care (Gap 2), and no capacity exists to reach out to and engage traumatized children and families in care once they have been identified (Gap 3). To fill these gaps, Boston STAR will pursue three goals. Goal 1: Increase by 35% from baseline (156 to 210) the number of infants, children, and adolescents accessing outpatient trauma care at BMC. Objectives: 1.1 By 11/30/21, educate and train pediatric primary care teams within BMC and our affiliated community health centers to screen for and address trauma symptoms, referring patients as appropriate to Boston STAR. 1.2 By 12/31/21, hire and train new staff (1.5 FTE LICSWs and 1.0 FTE Family Navigator). 1.3 Beginning 1/1/22, initiate outreach, navigation, intake assessment, and enrollment of six new patients/families per month up to achieve a caseload of 210 patients. 1.4 Beginning 1/1/22, plan and conduct quarterly informational webinars to advertise the availability of Boston STAR services. Goal 2: Increase the expertise of pediatric primary care providers in managing less complex trauma exposures. Objectives: 2.1 Beginning 1/1/22, provide 10 case consultations per month to pediatric primary care providers throughout BMC and its affiliated CHCs. 2.2 No later than March 31, 2021, initiate quarterly, case-based training on-line trainings for pediatric primary care providers. Goal 3: Manage, evaluate, sustain and disseminate Boston STAR. Objectives. 3.1 Beginning 1/1/22, initiate quarterly and annual evaluation of project processes and outcomes. 3.2 Beginning 1/1/22, initiate quarterly and annual evaluation of project processes and outcomes. Over the project period, we will serve a total of 342 patients (over baseline) enrolled in Boston STAR. Boston STAR’s core services include child-parent psychotherapy, trauma-focused cognitive/behavioral therapy, and family navigation. The Project Director is Kristin Parent, LMHC, from the Department of Psychiatry at BMC.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).