NEW Program on Mindfulness for 8-10 Years Old begins June, 2012
A new community-based program has been developed for latency aged children and will be piloted this summer. The four week 8 session program is based on the Still Quite Place TM: Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction curriculum for young children - learning how to direct and focus attention. Playful practices to promote health and happiness will be introduced along with making choices in difficult situations.
We are extremely grateful to Todd and Deborah Burger for their generous donation and selecting this innovative project targeting a younger population. Their gift will be appreciated by many families in the North Shore.
The First Class on Mindfulness for Salem High School students
The pilot class was held at the High School helping students to recognize physical, emotional and thoughts associated with stress and developing strategies for stress reduction through meditation and movement practices and adapting principles through group discussion. The students found it "awesome", "relaxing", and "cool".
The 10th Annual International Scientific Conference "Investigating and Integrating Mindfulness in Medicine, Health Care, and Society"
Our team presented a research poster from our work with "Cool Minds TM: A Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Program for Adolescents" on Thursday, March 29th. There was tremendous interest from conference participants from all over the world in our results and the adaptation of the MBSR program for teens.
Relapse Prevention Therapy and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction
Peter and Elizabeth C. Tower Foundation awarded the Family Resource Center the initial three-year grant to implement two innovative evidence-based techniques: Relapse Prevention Therapy (RPT) and Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) with the target population of adolescents with substance abuse disorders at the Recovery High School in Beverly.Parents of the teens in recovery were also included in the MBSR project. The program was planned collaboratively with Jefferson Prince MD, Mass General for Children at NSMC Department of Pediatric Psychiatry; Michelle Lipinski M.Ed., Principal and Jim Howland, Ed.D, M.S.W., LICSW, School Social Worker, North Shore Recovery High School and Marguerite Roberts MS, NP; Director of the Family Resource Center at Mass General for Children at NSMC.
These remarkable programs for teens and parents and the training for the staff has been made possible due to the generosity of the Tower Foundation. We are all extremely grateful for the three years of program development, training, and implementation.
Staff training began in the spring of 2009 with an intensive five day silent retreat at the Insight Meditation Society in Barre. Click here to learn more about the Insight Meditation Society or about the Center for Mindfulness. The second phase of training was completed in June when our team participated in a 7 Day Professional Training Retreat on Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction with Jon Kabat-Zinn and Saki Santorelli, at the Omega Center in Rhinebeck, New York, with several hundred other professionals from all over the world.
Read Family Trust Pediatric Behavioral Health Grant
Our team of mindfulness teachers: Jeff Prince, Jim Howland, and Marguerite Roberts previously taught the program at North Shore Recovery High School in Beverly for two semesters; the first in 8 weeks then a full semester long course four days a week. The Mindfulness program was also taught to two more classes of teens at MassGeneral /North Shore Center for Outpatient Care in Danvers. It is currently offered at NO COST for teens (14-17 years) for 8 Wednesday's. Adolescents have been referred by parents, pediatricians and providers. Many referrals come from School Adjustment Counselors. An additional benefit is for the many parents of teens taking the adult class in another area of the center; coming in together at 6:00pm on Wednesday's and learning mindfulness as a family.
The Read Family Trust has awarded the NSMC Family Resource Center another pediatric behavioral health grant, in collaboration with Salem Public Schools. The focus of the program will be to analyze YRBS results (youth risk behavior survey) and implement an SOS Signs of Suicide Prevention Program with Salem High School educators, ninth grade students, and their parents.
The focus of the project over the past few years had been twofold: first to provide analysis for previous YRBS results (Youth Risk Behavior Survey) from 2009 and 2010 which was done this year and then implementing an educational program for faculty on signs of depression and risks for suicide with the Salem High School educators and staff, ninth grade students and their parents this school year.
August 31st A professional development program was provided for faculty of the Salem High School "Depression in Adolescents" by Jefferson Prince MD.
September 22nd "Signs of Depression in Adolescents and How to Help" was presented by Jefferson Prince MD to the parents of the incoming 325 freshmen at the "Parent Back to School Night" at the High School. Resources were made available to all participants. A presentation on Bullying Prevention was also given by Robin D'Antona.
This project has been coordinated with Andrew Wulf, Headmaster of the Freshman House, David Angeramo, Principal at Salem High School and Jeanna Deleo and June Marie Kershaw, Adjustment Counselors. Given the greater awareness of students' concerns and behavioral health problems in the current environment and revealed through the YRBS, the onsite class in Mindfulness will be held Friday morning to better support the students. The pilot class is comprised of HS students either self-referred or referred by the Adjustment Counselors.
Specialized programs, available through the Lynn OD Prevention grant, are in development and will be provided to Emergency Departments, community physicians and related providers through NSMC North Shore Children's Hospital Pediatric Grand Rounds, and through Medical Grand Rounds this Fall at the Salem and Lynn campuses at North Shore Medical Center.
Smoking Cessation Program for Danvers High School Students
A pilot smoking cessation program for high school students, in collaboration with Danvers Cares and Danvers High School, is actively being designed and is sponsored by North Shore Medical Center .
