I was recently at a fundraiser hosted by a parent of a child who suffered a major traumatic event at 7 months of age. The child required prolonged ventilatory support in the intensive care unit. The child recovered and is now 12 years of age.
Although the child made a great physiological recovery, there were very significant psychosocial problems. The child's interactions with parents, family members, neighbors, and while at school and shopping centers were quite abnormal. The parents indicated that they were able to find an NGO in Australia who had recognized this as post-traumatic stress disorder and had found ways to handle the psychological trauma. Motivated by this experience, the parents teamed up with other parents of children who had experienced early intensive medical therapy to develop educational materials to guide parents and health care providers on the psychological needs of young children after complex medical interventions.
The...