TRAUMATIC STRESS IN LATINO IMMIGRANT ADOLESCENTS

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to measure the frequency of traumatic stress and associated psychological symptoms experienced by Latino immigrant children who attend Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School in Washington DC. Theodore Roosevelt Senior High School is a Title I public school in Ward 4 of Washington DC. The rationale for the target population lies in the fact that there are a growing number of immigrant children from Central America, South America, and Mexico in the D.C. Metro area, and these are children who have faced significant adversity both in their home countries as well as during their settlement in the United States. Along their journey, they face stressors during dangerous travel while fleeing their Central American homes, during detainment at the U.S. Mexico border, and during their transition to American life. According to data from the 2017-2018 academic school year, 52% of the student population at Roosevelt H.S. identified as Hispanic/Latino. We hypothesize that these children experience a significant amount of traumatic stress, and that there is a greater need for mental health services for this population. Methods: We consented, enrolled and distributed surveys to English or Spanish speaking adolescents who immigrated, or whose parents immigrated from a Spanish speaking country. We evaluated basic demographic information including age, gender, ethnicity, and whether trauma was experienced prior to, during, and/or after immigration. The Trauma Symptom Checklist for Children (TSCC) was used to measure the presence of symptoms of traumatic stress in these children. The TSCC is a self-report measure with 54 items that yield two validity scales (Underresponse and Hyperresponse); six clinical scales (Anxiety, Depression, Anger, Posttraumatic Stress, Dissociation and Sexual Concerns); and eight critical items (examining potential self-injury, suicidality, desire to harm others, etc.). Two supplemental questions were added to evaluate current available mental health services. Descriptive statistical analysis was the primary means of evaluating frequency of participant responses to experiencing trauma before, during and after immigration; as well as the frequency of participants with positive responses in each of the six clinical categories of symptoms. This project was developed with CME funds. Results: Total of 23 participants met the inclusion criteria. 44% of the subjects who were screened reported peritraumatic experiences, ho