Media Contact
Sam Fahmy
Director of Communications
School of Public Health
[email protected]
ATLANTA— With funding from Humana, the Georgia Association for Infant Mental Health: Birth to Five (GA-AIMH), housed in the Georgia State University School of Public Health Center for Leadership in Disability, will help prepare clinicians across the state to better support the mental health needs of young children and families.
Through a series of trainings, 24 mental health clinicians across Georgia will learn how to implement trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy (TF-CBT). This evidence-based treatment is designed for children, starting from age 3, who have experienced trauma, abuse, neglect or violence, which are known as adverse childhood experiences (ACES).
“The first five years of a child's development is such a critical period. It is during this time that the groundwork for lifelong healthy social-emotional development is established,” said Raynell Washington, GA-AIMH Project Manager. “Providing services and supports early on, by teaching children how to develop coping skills, regulate their emotions and build resiliency, lays the foundation for positive mental health.”
Washington explained that the goals of TF-CBT are to help children process a broad array of emotional and behavioral difficulties associated with single, multiple and complex trauma experiences, and to adapt healthy coping skills that enable them to engage in day-to-day activities. Cognitive behavioral therapy is often referred to as “talk therapy,” but clinicians working with young children often incorporate elements of play therapy for children who use other forms of communication to describe their experiences.
More than 50 scientific studies have shown that trauma-focused cognitive behavioral therapy can reduce post-traumatic stress and symptoms of depression among youth while increasing their resiliency. With more than 126,000 cases of suspected abuse or neglect of children reported to the Georgia Division of Children and Family Services in 2023 alone, there’s a substantial need for trauma-informed clinicians trained to uplift and support family strengths and relationships.
The trainings offered through GA-AIMH will include 11 hours of pre-training webinars, five days of instructional presentations and 12 months of group-based case consultation calls. Clinicians who complete the training will be nationally certified in TF-CBT, enabling them to provide effective treatment to young children who have experienced trauma and their families.
Washington said the TF-CBT trainings are a part of GA-AIMH’s broader effort to support early childhood professionals in addressing the social-emotional and developmental needs of young children and their families.
“We're excited to receive this support from Humana, which will provide clinicians statewide with an opportunity to enhance their toolkit and deepen their understanding of how to support young children and their families with a trauma-informed and equity lens,” Washington said.
About the Georgia Association for Infant Mental Health: Birth to Five
The Georgia Association for Infant Mental Health: Birth to Five (GA-AIMH) is Georgia's infant and early childhood mental health workforce development hub. Its mission is to promote the mental health of families, infants and young children as an essential foundation for development.GA-AIMH envisions a state where every infant and young child in Georgia feels safe and nurtured through consistent, caregiving relationships, so they can achieve their fullest potential.To learn more about GA-AIMH, visit aimh.gsu.edu.
— Story by Sam Fahmy