Pediatricians are one of the first and most trusted people you turn to when you have a new baby. They are a phone call away when your child is sick, and you don’t know what to do. They give you advice on how to raise a healthy, well-balanced child.
Pediatricians and all healthcare professionals play an important role in our individual lives. They also play a critical role on a larger scale in our communities as they are some of the first to raise their voices and expose a public health issue.
Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha is the Flint, Michigan pediatrician and public health advocate who first reported there was lead in the drinking water. She went public with her research and faced backlash. She persisted. But despite the tireless efforts by her and many others, the Flint water crisis is a public health crisis that is still not resolved. She has just published a book called “What the Eyes Don’t See – A Story of Crisis, Resistance and Hope in an American City”. A portion of the proceeds from book sales will be donated to Flint Kids.
Dr. Colleen Kraft, president of the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), was one of the first to visit the facilities where thousands of children are being held after being separated from their parents as they cross our southern border seeking asylum. 70 children a day are being separated from their parents.
In a May 8th statement opposing the policy of separating families, the AAP stated: “Separating children from their parents contradicts everything we stand for as pediatricians – protecting and promoting children’s health. In fact, highly stressful experiences, like family separation, can cause irreparable harm, disrupting a child’s brain architecture and affecting his or her short- and long-term health. This type of prolonged exposure to serious stress – known as toxic stress – can carry lifelong consequences for children.”
Clinical psychologists describe the human toll this crisis is taking on children. The trauma and long term psychological and physical effects. In a recent interview, Dr. Kraft said the “zero tolerance” policy separating families at the border “amounts to child abuse.”
Nearly 4600 mental health professionals and 90 organizations have signed a petition urging the president and the attorney general to stop separating families at the border.
The media are shining a spotlight on the crisis at the border day after day. Continue reading