April 2024

There is due diligence for increased awareness and intervention upon the mental and emotional needs of children and adolescents in the foster care system, particularly so in Florida. Alachua County specifically has anywhere between 300 and 600 children and adolescents in the system on any given year, with more than half being removed from their unit on the basis of maltreatment (FL Child Welfare Measures, 2022); thus the overall trends for an increased overall need of mental and emotional...

This was a virtual program that included high school students from the Miami-Dade County public school district who had suffered the loss of at least one parent or primary caregiver. The intervention is made up of a team of child psychologists, licensed professional counselors, and licensed social workers that have undergone trauma-informed training before the program launch. The intervention is composed of virtual individual counseling sessions, virtual group therapy sessions, and social...

Project Overview Adolescents who have experienced multiple ACEs are more prone to reporting a range of mental health symptoms, suicidal tendencies, engagement in violent behavior, and substance use (Meeker et al., 2021). This is of particular importance for Alachua County since the rate of hospitalizations from non-fatal self-harm injuries in adolescents aged 12-18 years in 2022 was 140.8 compared to the state rate of Florida at 71 (Florida Health Charts, 2022). The project proposal aims to...

Adolescent pregnancy is associated with a variety of health, social, economic, and educational consequences including an increased risk of pregnancy and birth complications, higher risk of premature birth, high rates of financial insecurity, and less educational attainment (Eliner et al., 2022; Hillis et al., 2004; Cone et al., 2021). Due to these concerns, the reduction of adolescent pregnancy is an important public health goal defined by the Office of Disease Prevention and Health...

This was a virtual program that included high school students from the Miami-Dade County public school district who had suffered the loss of at least one parent or primary caregiver. The intervention is made up of a team of child psychologists, licensed professional counselors, and licensed social workers that have undergone trauma-informed training before the program launch. The intervention is composed of virtual individual counseling sessions, virtual group therapy sessions, and social...

Our grant proposal outlines an innovative, trauma-informed program aimed at eradicating bullying among adolescents in Springfield's middle and high schools. The Springfield Alliance for Youth Resilience (SAYR) will deploy a suite of strategies informed by trauma-aware practices—ensuring safety, fostering trust, enabling peer support, promoting collaboration, and ensuring cultural sensitivity. Addressing the interpersonal and community levels of the Social Ecological Model, SAYR will...

Project Overview Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of death among adults in the United States, taking nearly 700,000 lives in 2021 alone (CDC, 2023). Black Americans are at particular risk for dying of heart disease, with CVD accounting for 22.6% of their deaths compared to only 18% of deaths among white Americans (CDC, 2023). To combat this issue, I have created an intervention that focuses on addressing CVD in Black adults aged 20-49 in Alachua County, To narrow the focus...

Summary: In 2023, over 15% of children in Florida, aged 12 to 17, reported experiencing at least one major depressive episode in the previous year, while 50% of young adults, aged 18 to 24, reported experiencing symptoms of both anxiety or depression (Florida Blue, n.d.) My project addressed adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and depression and how utilizing a community-based approach we can empower children to become resilient. Utilizing the six trauma-informed principles of safety,...

Justice-involved youth is a population that is found to be burdened with poverty, community violence, and adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). Becoming involved with the justice system as a minor increases the likelihood for additional adversity, such as further traumatization, adult incarceration, mental health and substance abuse issues, chronic disease, and early death (Aazami et al., 2023; Baglivio et al., 2014; Dadi, 2017; Dierkhising, 2013; Felitti et al., 1998). In Alachua County,...

Project Description Underserved/underrepresented populations are more likely to experience ACEs due to factors such as structural and historical inequalities (Camacho & Clark Henderson, 2022). Currently, Alachua County is experiencing an increase in underserved/underrepresented populations, and these groups have limited access to care (Dalton et al., 2021). Additionally, hypertension is particularly common in Florida, affecting nearly half of the adults between the ages of 45 and 79...

Project Description Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) have demonstrated higher rates of infection in Alachua County (Florida Department of Health, 2022) and among those who have experienced ACEs (Felitti et al., 2018). Additionally, STI testing resources in low-income communities have often been under-utilized (Fasciana et al., 2022). Based on this, I have proposed an intervention to improve STI knowledge and safe sexual health practices, including routine STI testing, among a...

Due to the experiences they witness in their profession, nurses are likely to experience secondary traumatic stress (STS), which is the trauma that occurs when empathetic attachments are made with patients or providers experiencing other’s trauma ( İlhan & Küpeli, 2022 ). A recent study found that 39.9% of healthcare workers surveyed met the criteria for PTSD (Bayazit et al., 2022). Strengthening resilience among nurses has been found to reduce the negative effects of PTSD among this...