By Gene Beresin, Executive Director and Khadijah Booth Watkins, Associate Director

Posted in: Hot Topics, Multimedia, Podcasts

Topics: COVID-19 + Family Mental Health, Stress

During the pandemic, many kids across the country have been doing most or all of their schooling online. But now, a year later, many communities are finally finding ways to bring kids back to school, in person. While it’s largely agreed on that in-person schooling is critical for child and teen positive mental health and social-emotional development, going back comes with new concerns and COVID-19 anxiety for kids, parents, and teachers alike.

In this episode of Shrinking It Down, Gene and Khadijah share insights from their clinical practice as child psychiatrists on supporting the mental health of your family with some of these mid-year “back-to-school” challenges.

Thank you for joining in this conversation. Do you have anxieties or concerns about sending your kids back to school during Covid? We’d love to know. Write to us!

Read more on our blog for a summary of this episode.

Media List (follow along with the conversation)

• More Schools Are Returning To In-Person Learning. How Do You Decide To Send Your Child Back? (Wisconsin Public Radio)
• K-12 School Operational Strategy (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
• Coronavirus: Teens’ anxiety levels dropped during pandemic, study finds (BBC News)
• Going Back to School During COVID-19 Is a Struggle for Students, Teachers, and Parents (Teen Vogue)
• 7 Ways to Support Kids and Teens Through the Coronavirus Pandemic (MGH Clay Center)
• Should kids get a snow day? (The Weather Channel)
• Harvard EdCast: College Admissions During COVID (Harvard Graduate School of Education)
• Mental Wellness in School-Age Children (Project TEACH)
• Mental Wellness in the Teen Years (Project TEACH)
• How to Help Young People Cope With Grief and Loss During COVID-19 (MGH Clay Center)
• Is Remote Learning Causing A Mental Health Crisis Among Teens And Children? (WBEZ Chicago)
• What Families should Know About Suicide (MGH Clay Center)
• Supporting Your Family’s Emotional Health During COVID-19 (MGH Clay Center)
• The Nuts and Bolts of Telepsychiatry, featuring Janet Wozniak, MD (MGH Clay Center)
• Where To Turn (MGH Clay Center)
• How Do We Heal From Here? A Guide for Families and Our Nation (MGH Clay Center)

If you or someone you know is in distress and needs support, connect with a crisis counselor 24/7:

• Call 1-800-273-8255 (National Suicide Prevention Lifeline)
• Text “HOME” to 741741 (US/Canada). UK: text 85258. Ireland: text 50808. (Crisis Text Line)

Tune in wherever you get your podcasts – just search for ‘Shrinking It Down.’

Music by Gene Beresin

Episode produced by Sara Rattigan

Description:
In order to better serve our community, The Neighborhood Developers is running a survey of the
local community and will need people to help administer these surveys. This position entails
going out to assigned addresses in the community and encouraging residents to fill out
community surveys. The persons must be able to accurately and quickly record responses and
return these responses, in good condition, to a recorder at the TND office. Due to the nature of
the work, surveyors will work in pairs, making punctuality and interpersonal skills necessary.
There are positions available for the Chelsea Resident Satisfaction Survey. Position runs
through August 2021.
Qualifications:
● 18 years old or older
● Proficient in English or Spanish (Bilingual preferred)
● Able to navigate a 10 block area, map provided
● Reliable and punctual
● Works well with others
● Able to record information legibly
● Able to work with little or no supervision
● Able to walk and stand for 2 hour periods
Contact:
TNDSurveys@tndinc.org

GreenRoots Annual Earth Day Celebration
In Person!

Bring a mask, stay socially distant, but come out and help us
clean-up Chelsea & Eastie!

We will meet at Chelsea City Hall & at the Condor Urban Wild in East Boston
April 24 ~ 9am

Join Us in Chelsea…

Join Us in East Boston…

MASSACHUSETTS GENERAL BRIGHAM

GENERAL SUMMARY/ OVERVIEW STATEMENT: Summarize the nature and level of work performed.

We are looking for a highly motivated Research Enrollment Coordinator I to engage, recruit, enroll, and retain participants into the All of Us Research Program at one or more of our multiple locations including, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital, Newton-Wellesley Hospital, North Shore Medical Center, Brookside Community Health Center, Chelsea HealthCare Center, Revere HealthCare Center, and Southern Jamaica Plain Health Center. The Research Enrollment Coordinator I’s work is conducted with patients in multiple settings (primarily clinic-based approach of patients, engagement with patients from a Program table, and phone-based outreach).  The position requires periodic evening and weekend hours. We may have part-time and full-time positions available.

The All of Us Research Program is a nationwide initiative with the goal of building a diverse cohort of one million U.S. volunteers. The Program strives to represent the diversity of the U.S. population with participants from different socioeconomic backgrounds, ancestral backgrounds, health conditions, lifestyles and environments. Samples and data are collected from participants and are stored in a secure database to provide researchers with baseline data, biospecimens, healthcare records, survey data, wearable device information and genetic results. All of Us Research Program will support research in various areas including pharmacogenetics, precision medicine, prediction and prevention to advance treatments of diseases.

Access to training is available, including but not limited to: phlebotomy; taking physical measurements such as heart rate, and blood pressure; how to engage with participants; as well as program software.

For more information: www.joinallofus.org   |   www.rally.partners.org/study/allofushttps://www.joinallofus.org/newsletters/2020/july

“When Kolbi Brown joined All of Us at NYC Health + Hospitals Harlem in 2017, he wasn’t just starting a new job. He was changing careers. Kolbi had worked in real estate and property management for about 10 years, mostly in Harlem. He saw the issues that people around him were facing—including health problems. And he started to wonder what he could do to help the community where he lived and worked. “All of Us came along,” he says, “and gave me the opportunity to be a part of something that will be really meaningful.”

To learn more about Kolbi and his work, watch this video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hN0zz8jZLjI&feature=youtu.be

PRINCIPAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:     Indicate key areas of responsibility, major job duties, special projects and key objectives for this position.  These items should be evaluated throughout the year and included in the written annual evaluation.

1. Communicate, educate and invite inpatient & outpatient populations, and the surrounding community, about the mission and objectives of the All of Us Research Program (AoURP) and articulate how our mission can benefit future generations and further health research.

2. Participate in pre-enrollment engagement activities including, but not limited to, a) engaging and inviting patients at Program tables in hospitals, community health centers and community-based events; b) approaching patients in the clinical setting (community health centers and hospital-based clinics); and c) calling patients on the phone.

3. Recruit study participants at community health centers and hospital-based clinics/inpatient services. Approach patients on inpatient floors and educate them on the program’s mission. Gauge patient’s interest and ability to participate in our program. Guide interested patients through the process of signing up for and consenting to the program.

4. Assist with electronic informed consent using specialized software, answering questions from participants.

5. Make phone calls to potential study participants and schedule them for enrollment visits using specialized software.

6. Conduct physical measurements and vital signs and perform phlebotomy (blood draws) on research subjects.

7. Track and record engagement and enrollment activities in program-specific software. Responsible for data validation and quality control.

8. Conduct retention activities by making phone calls and mailing letters to study participants about follow up surveys and any new/additional program activities. Engage with participants in various clinical settings about programmatic updates and activities.

9. All other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:  (MUST be realistic, neither overstated nor understated, and related to the essential functions of the job.)

1. High School Diploma or GED required.
2. Experience in customer service or a position requiring strong communication skills is preferred.
3. Bachelor’s degree preferred but not required.
4. The ideal candidate enjoys interacting with diverse communities, is flexible, positive, friendly and a team player with excellent communication and organizational skills.
5. Comfortable working flexible hours, including some evenings and weekends
6. Phlebotomy certification preferred but not required. Training will be provided.
7. Spanish fluency strongly preferred.
8. Fluency in languages other than English is a plus.

SKILLS/ ABILITIES/ COMPETENCIES REQUIRED:                  (MUST be realistic, neither overstated nor understated, and related to the essential functions of the job.)

1. People: Focus on serving the community through collaboration and respect.
2. Inclusiveness: Maintain an environment where individuals value and respect differences in all situations. Stand firm against and work to identify, address and prevent intolerance and bias in research to create a welcoming environment and respect all individuals regardless of race, gender identity, ethnicity, language, sexual orientation, age, physical or mental ability, religion, socio-economic status, or national origin.
3. Must have interpersonal skills to interact effectively with patients from varied backgrounds, MDs, researchers and other team members.
4. Work effectively with others who have diverse perspectives, talents, roles, backgrounds and/or styles
5. Contribute to a positive team environment where differences are respected, supported and are free from stereotyping and offensive comments.
6. Be receptive to feedback from team members and managers and be able to give feedback to others. Must have strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
7. Must be able to prioritize and organize work responsibilities to meet deadlines.
8. Must possess integrity to maintain patient confidentiality.
9. Must be detail-oriented and organized. Must possess strong overall computer skills.
10. Must be able to make independent judgments for these job duties and responsibilities.
11. Ability to perform phlebotomy and take vital signs. Training will be provided.

WORKING CONDITIONS:          Describe the conditions in which the work is performed.

Work in hospital settings (this may include inpatient units, outpatient practices; hospital waiting rooms) and normal office environment where there are no discomforts due to extreme temperature, dust, and the like. During the pandemic and recovery, some work activities may be done remotely.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY:  List the number of FTEs supervised.

None

FISCAL RESPONSIBILITY:      Indicate financial “scope” information, i.e.: size of budget, volume, revenue, etc.

None

April Calendar (1) Guest Readers – spanish Guest Reader WOTYC

UNDERGRADUATE RFA 2021 The MGH Youth Neurology Education and Research Program

HIGH SCHOOL RFA 2021 The MGH Youth Neurology Education and Research Program