The Center for Traumatic Stress in Children and Adolescents is considered a national leader in developing and researching evidence-based, trauma focused therapies for children and adolescents. It provides prompt evaluation and treatment of children who have experienced a variety of traumatic life events, including abuse and neglect, witnessing violence at home, school, or in the community, death of a loved one, natural or man-made disasters, accidents, medical traumas or traumas related to terrorism or war. Founded and directed by Anthony P. Mannarino, Ph.D. and Judith A. Cohen, M.D., the program's focus is on children and families affected by trauma, with the goal of alleviating serious symptoms and promoting healthy coping responses in these children and their families. The Center employs evidence-based models including trauma-focused cognitive-behavioral therapy (TF-CBT), abuse-focused CBT (AF-CBT), and traumatic grief CBT (TG-CBT), which was adapted from TF-CBT for children who lost a loved one under traumatic circumstances and which includes sequential child and parent trauma and grief-focused components. The Center develops, tests, adapts, disseminates, and implements these and other evidence-supported treatments for traumatized children, adolescents and families in collaboration with the National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN) and others.
The Center is the only one of its kind in the region. In addition to offering evaluation and treatment services, the Center is committed to making others aware of the impact of trauma through trainings, research, and outreach. In this vein, the Center is involved in the development of educational materials for parents and professionals, conducts train-the-trainer programs, and participates in the TF-CBT National Breakthrough Series Collaborative.
The Center works collaboratively across service systems, including outpatient, inpatient, community-based settings, schools, juvenile justice facilities, foster homes and group homes, and with child protective services agencies.
To make a referral, an appointment, or to obtain more information, please contact the Center's Intake Evaluator at 412.330.4328 or go to www.pittsburghchildtrauma.org.
