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Implementation of a screen and treat program for child posttraumatic stress disorder in a school setting after a school suicide
Author(s) -
Charuvastra Anthony,
Goldfarb Elizabeth,
Petkova Eva,
Cloitre Marylene
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of traumatic stress
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.259
H-Index - 134
eISSN - 1573-6598
pISSN - 0894-9867
DOI - 10.1002/jts.20546
Subject(s) - posttraumatic stress , suicide prevention , injury prevention , psychiatry , poison control , occupational safety and health , human factors and ergonomics , medicine , psychology , clinical psychology , medical emergency , pathology
To provide effective treatments for childhood posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) children with PTSD must first be identified. The authors implemented a “screen and treat” program following a widely witnessed school suicide. Three months after the suicide, exposed students received the Child Trauma Symptom Questionnaire at school. Parents received the questionnaire to rate their children's PTSD symptoms. Children with scores ⩾5 received follow‐up interviews and those diagnosed with PTSD were referred for treatment. Ninety‐six percent of exposed students were screened, 14% screened positive, and 6% had PTSD. Child and parent agreement was generally poor. All children with PTSD were successfully referred to treatment. Screen and treat programs using existing clinical instruments are efficient and acceptable for use in school settings following trauma.