On Wednesday morning, over 120 residents and representatives from community-based organizations, foundations, businesses, nonprofits, and service providers assembled to discuss trauma and mental health in Baltimore City. We convened the first in a series of meetings to better understand how the community defines and experiences trauma in order for the department to build better policies and programs that emphasize and lift up the work already happening in the community. As a result, we will build a citywide plan to address trauma in our communities.

Dr. Wen opened the event, noting that in Healthy Baltimore 2020, we call out violence, poverty, and racism as structural issues that can be addressed through a public health lens. By addressing racism and structural disparities, we can build healthier communities and establish a better quality of life and well-being for Baltimore’s residents. She expressed the importance digging deeper into how trauma affects communities by trying to cease the cycle of violence through preventative measures, such as addressing lead poisoning and access to proper vision care.

During smaller group breakout sessions, the attendees had the opportunity to discuss trauma from a personal, organizational, and/or structural perspective. We opened the conversation by asking each person to explain how they or their organization defines “trauma.” . We want our work to be informed by the community and will continue working with residents to build this definition as part of the plan to address trauma in the city.

One of the main themes from the small group discussions focused on trauma by understanding that it is experienced on a highly individualized basis. Trauma acts on a spectrum, covers a wide range of topics, is experienced differently at different ages, and may be transferred from social structures to the individual, such as family, policies, policing, and domestic violence. Another main theme focused on the structural implications of trauma. Community members explained that many policies prevent people of color from accessing the resources they need to obtain a better quality of life.

We look forward to the future meetings where this conversation will continue to evolve and develop our understanding of how BCHD can craft policies and programs that better address trauma in the community.

For more information about our work regarding trauma, contact Sonia Sarkar (sonia.sarkar@baltimorecity.gov).