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William Paterson University and St. Joseph's Regional Medical Center Offer Workshops on Children's Health Issues

Stress management and cyber bullying are among the topics to be discussed at two  afternoon workshops designed for teachers, school nurses, school counselors and parents to be held at William Paterson University this fall. The programs are co-sponsored by St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center in Paterson, and William Paterson University’s College of Education and Center for Continuing and Professional Education.

 Both workshops will be held in the University’s building at 1600 Valley Road from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Admission is $15 per workshop and pre-registration is required since space is limited.

On Tuesday, November 30, Christine Lee, psychiatric nurse practitioner, Department of Psychiatry, St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center, will present “Stress Management for School Staff.”  According to the National Education Association, more than 40 percent of surveyed teachers describe teaching as “extremely stressful” and as many as 50 percent of new teachers leave the profession before their fifth year. Common stressors include coping with budget cuts, managing a heavy workload, motivating youngsters, maintaining classroom discipline, and preparing students for standardized tests. Lee will also suggest ways to control the work environment, and summarize the eight traits of emotional resilience.

 “Cyberbullying” will be the topic for the December 7 panel discussion.  More than 40 percent of young people say they have been bullied online and nine out of ten middle school students have had their feelings hurt online. Cyberbullies strike anonymously, at all hours and kids often have no escape. The consequences of cyberbullying range from stolen passwords and identity theft to depression, loss of self-esteem, exposure to sexual predators, murder and suicide. The panelists will discuss when intervention from mental health or law enforcement officials is indicated. Panelists will include Joshua Belsky, M.S.W., L.C.S.W., director of the Passaic County Screening Program, St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center; Silvia Blaustein, M.D., co-chief of adolescent medicine, The Children’s Hospital at St. Joseph’s, and Javier Castellanos, detective, Passaic County Sheriff’s Department.

 For additional information or to register, please call William Paterson’s Center for Continuing and Professional Education at 973-720-2354 or visit the University’s Web site at www.wpunj.edu/cpe (click on the register now button in the upper right-hand corner).

St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital, an acute care specialized state designated children’s hospital at St. Joseph’s Regional Medical Center, is sponsored by the Sisters of Charity of Saint Elizabeth and is a component of St. Joseph’s Healthcare System.  For more information about the programs and services of St. Joseph’s Healthcare System and St. Joseph’s Children’s Hospital, please their newly enhanced website, www.StJosephsHealth.org or call 877-757-SJHS (7547).

 William Paterson University in Wayne offers more than 250 undergraduate and graduate academic programs through five colleges: Arts and Communication, Cotsakos College of Business, Education, Humanities and Social Sciences, and Science and Health. Located on 370 hilltop acres in Wayne, the University enrolls more than 11,000 students and provides housing for approximately 2,600 students. The institution’s 379 full-time faculty are highly distinguished and diverse scholars and teachers, many of whom are recipients of prestigious awards and grants from the Fulbright Program, the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Institutes of Health, and the National Science Foundation.