The Treatment of Trauma in Young Children

Sponsored by the Boston Institute for the Development of Infants and Parents and the Freedman Center for Child & Family Development

Bruce Duncan Perry, M.D., Ph.D., presenter

Both trauma and neglect, resulting in the absence of essential developmental experiences required to express a fundamental potential of a child, are pervasive problems in our culture, especially among foster and adopted children. Chaos, threat and abnormal patterns of emotional, social, cognitive and physical interactions with young children lead to an array of brain-related problems. This conference will review clinical work and research that can help practitioners better understand developmental trauma, neglect and the relational problems that arise from trauma and neglect. An overview will be provided that suggests new directions for clinical practice, program development and policy.  The afternoon will feature two clinical case presentations by community clinicians, followed by discussion of the cases by Dr. Perry.

Upon attending this conference, participants will beable to:

·         Provide an overview of key principles of neurodevelopment crucial for understanding the role of experience in defining functional and physical organization of the brain

·         Describe the emerging clinical and research findings in maltreated children that suggest the negative impact of abuse, neglect and trauma on brain development

·         Outline the clinical implications of a neurodevelopmental approach to child trauma and maltreatment

·         Discuss the role of public policy and preventative practices in context of the impact of maltreatment on children's emotional, behavioral, cognitive, social and physical health

Program Code: TYC6
6 CE Credits
Location: at MSPP, Newton

Bruce D. Perry, M.D., Ph.D., is the Senior Fellow of The ChildTrauma Academy (www.ChildTrauma.org) in Houston and an Adjunct Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Feinberg School of Medicine of Northwestern University in Chicago. He is a clinician and researcher in children's mental health and the neurosciences, and an internationally-recognized authority on children in crisis. From 1993-2001, he was the Thomas S. Trammell Research Professor of Psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine and Chief of Psychiatry at Texas Children's Hospital. He is currently Senior Fellow at the ChildTrauma Academy, which is a leading center of research and education on child maltreatment. He also serves as Senior Consultant to the Alberta Ministry of Children's Services in Canada. Perry has served as a consultant and expert witness on many high-profile incidents involving traumatized children, including the Columbine High School massacre, the Oklahoma City bombing and the Waco siege. His clinical research and practice focuses on examining the long-term effects of trauma in children, adolescents, and adults and has been instrumental in describing how traumatic events in childhood change the biology of the brain. He is the author of more than 200 journal articles, book chapters, and scientific proceedings and is the recipient of a variety of professional awards. Perry's Neurosequential Model of Therapeutics is currently the working model used by Youthville’s Trauma Recovery Center in Wichita, Kansas. He is the author, with Maia Szalavitz of The Boy Who Was Raised as a Dog: -What Traumatized Children Can Teach Us About Loss, Love, and Healing, 2007.