Dear Friends,
I rarely send information about work that I do wearing my professional hat, but today is an exception. I hope that this newly created website, Take Care PHL, that I’ve worked on with colleagues from CHOP, Support Center for Child Advocates, Jefferson, and Philadelphia Departments of Public Health and Behavioral Health, will resonate with many of you. The site focuses on secondary traumatic stress (STS). STS is a real and serious occupational hazard that affects people whose jobs and professions have them bear witness to the pain and trauma of others. STS affects therapists, social workers, educators, physicians, nurses, clergy, first responders, even public defenders, judges and more. STS can be extremely debilitating and has symptoms that mirror post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Our goal in creating this website is to validate the experiences that can lead to STS among professionals, destigmatize STS, and provide many solutions for preventing and mitigating it. The solutions range from tools to help individuals engage in self-care to how organizations, institutions, and systems can make structural changes to better support their workforce. The site is also a work in progress and we are open to adding more information and critiques.
Please take a look and share widely. If you think you or someone you know may be experiencing STS this site can be a place to begin getting the help that is needed and feel free to reach out to me individually for more ideas on where help may be available.
B’Shalom
Leslie Lieberman
