Symposium 18 - Community Engaged and Participatory Strategies Across the Life Span to Characterize and Treat Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders

Chair(s)

• 

  Amantia Ametaj, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

  Northeastern University
  Boston, MA, United States

Discussant(s)

• SV

  Sarah Valentine, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

  Assistant professor
  Boston Medical Center and Boston University
  Boston, MA, United States

Presenter(s)

• 

  Kristina Conroy, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

  Postdoctoral Fellow
  Massachusetts General Hospital
  Boston, MA, United States
• 

  Emily Blevins, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

  Massachusetts General Hospital
  Boston, MA, United States
• 

  Amantia Ametaj, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

  Northeastern University
  Boston, MA, United States
• NA

  Nuha Alshabani, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)

  Boston Medical Center
  Boston, MA, United States

Traumatic and stressor related disorders are common and highly burdensome conditions that impact health, quality of life, and disability across the lifespan. Despite advances in evidence-based interventions, most children and adults impacted by these disorders do not receive adequate treatment due to barriers to both access and quality of care. Community engaged and participatory (CEP) strategies are focused on collaborating with communities and people with lived experiences of trauma to improve research, interventions, and implementation efforts. As such, CEP strategies may be helpful to address unique challenges for populations experiencing high levels of traumatic stress disorders.
The current symposium aims to illustrate various CEP methods to include people with lived experiences of trauma throughout the lifespan. CEP strategies can vary from consultation with communities through an advisory board to Community-based Participatory Research (CBPR), which involves communities in all research stages including selection of research aims. In this symposium, we will present projects focused on trauma and utilizing various CEP strategies along the continuum for understanding, developing, and delivering services most helpful to those impacted. Dr. Kristina Conroy will present findings from a systematic literature review of CBPR strategies for parents and children in trauma-focused treatments for children and adolescents. Dr. Emily Blevins will present on a parent advisory board to implement trauma-informed services for children and families in primary care in an urban teaching hospital. Dr. Amantia Ametaj will present data on a community engaged study with people of lived experiences of trauma using qualitative interviews to characterize views of trauma’s impact on health and services. Dr. Nuha Alshabani will present on co-developing a psychoeducation and coping skills group curriculum to address mental health sequela of trauma and oppression for three marginalized communities, including patients of Latina, sexual and gender minority, and Black migrants at a large safety net hospital in New England. The discussant, Dr. Sarah Valentine, a CBPR expert, will structure the discussion around the benefits and challenges of CBPR (e.g., CBPR processes to address power imbalances between community and research collaborators, how to develop shared goals and inform change in working with families, youth, and adults).

Presentations:

• 5:06 PM - 5:27 PM CST

  (SYM 18) A Systematic Review of Community Based Participatory Research Efforts to Understand and Address Trauma Exposure in Children and Caregivers in the United States
  

  Speaker: Kristina Conroy, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Kristina Conroy, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Emily J. Blevins, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Amantia Ametaj, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Caley Mikesell, M.A. – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Alyssa Fuller, MPH – Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

  Co-author: Rohan Chopra, B.A. – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Alisa Lincoln, Ph.D. – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Archana Basu, Ph.D. – Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School
• 5:27 PM - 5:48 PM CST

  (SYM 18) Parents as Experts: Implementing a Parent Advisory Board to Research Trauma-informed Services for Parents and Children
  

  Speaker: Emily J. Blevins, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Caley Mikesell, M.A. – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Makiko Watanabe, Ph.D. – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Dana Allswede, Ph.D. – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Katelyn Malvese, M.A. (she/her/hers) – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Mary Wallace, B.A. (she/her/hers) – Massachusetts General Hospital

  Co-author: Archana Basu, Ph.D. – Massachusetts General Hospital/Harvard Medical School
• 5:48 PM - 6:09 PM CST

  (SYM 18) Perspectives of People with Lived Experiences of Trauma on Formal Mental Health Services and Barriers to Care
  

  Speaker: Amantia Ametaj, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Jasmine Elsayed, HS (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Arielle A.J. Scoglio, PhD (she/her/hers) – Bentley University

  Co-author: Rohan Chopra, B.A. – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Paige DePasquale, MA (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Chloe Mak, HS (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Rabiya Jaffry, HS (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Julisa Fernendez-Rivera, MA (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Alyssa Fuller, MPH – Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard

  Co-author: Suzanne Garverich, MPH (she/her/hers) – Northeastern University

  Co-author: Alisa Lincoln, Ph.D. – Northeastern University
• 6:09 PM - 6:30 PM CST

  (SYM 18) Co-development of Psychoeducation and Coping Skill Intervention to Dually Address Trauma and Oppression-based Stress Among Three Marginalized Communities
  

  Speaker: Nuha Alshabani, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Boston Medical Center

  Co-author: Samantha LaMartine, Psy.D. – Boston Medical Center Wellness & Recovery After Psychosis (WRAP) Research Program

  Co-author: Grace Crosley, BA – Boston Medical Center

  Co-author: Sarah Valentine, Ph.D. (she/her/hers) – Boston Medical Center and Boston University