Covid-19 and trauma: Cape Fear efforts to address the long-term impacts of the pandemic(Port City Daily)

By Kevin Maurer, May 9, 2020, Port City Daily.

WILMINGTON — Most days, Audrey Hart is doing well.

But on a couple of days a week, the stress of the pandemic takes its toll on Hart, director of the New Hanover Disaster Coalition. How could it not when you’re the one who gets called when a hurricane is bearing down on the coast or a virus is overwhelming the world’s hospitals?

Hart is far from alone. The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic are stark. Rising death tolls coupled with the cratering of the global economy has put undue stress on communities worldwide. Experts fear one of the lingering issues post COVID-19 will be trauma and early data shows an uptick in child, domestic, and substance abuse.

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