W#15 Health Promotion replies

POST # 2 BETHANY

Week 15 Discussion 1: Faculty and Students as Vulnerable Populations: Violence Screening Tool The purpose of this post is to discuss the potential for violence in communities, what the greatest risk factors are for these events, what changes might improve safety, and how the perspective of a Columbine shooter’s mother could be valuable to these changes. The greatest risk factor for violence in every community lies in the mental health status of its’ citizens. It is a fact that those that struggle with mental health conditions are more prone to participate in violent activities. The more individuals who struggle with conditions and don’t receive the proper recognition, treatment, and support, the higher the potential for violence in that community (Halle et al., 2020). Many communities are making the proper adjustments to educate the public on mental health through advertisements that educate on the signs of mental health problems and the ways to access help. Mental health has become a common topic in families, churches, and social gatherings as communities have become more open and supportive of those that struggle (Pawluk & Zolezzi, 2017). These adjustments have resulted in less suffering in secrecy and more treatment and support thus decreasing the potential for violence and improve safety in these communities.   Provided in this week’s material was a TED Talk from the mother of a Columbine High School shooting that killed many students and a teacher. It is easy to automatically judge and hate this woman, blaming her for what her son did; however, if we just listen for a moment, we learn that she tried to be the best mom possible, but her son chose for himself to make a terrible decision. There are many different sufferers in such a tragedy like this one but blame and anger only make the despair and depression of losing a loved one worse. It never ceases to amaze me the miracle of compassion and forgiveness for every individual involved and that is evidenced through all of life's struggles (Zaki, 2020). References Halle, C., Tzani-Pepelasi, C., Pylarinou, N.-R., & Fumagalli, A. (2020). The link between mental health, crime and violence. New Ideas in Psychology, 58.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.newideapsych.2020.100779 Pawluk, S. A., & Zolezzi, M. (2017). Healthcare professionals’ perspectives on a mental health educational campaign for the public. Health Education Journal, 76, 479–491. Zaki, J. (2020). Catastrophe Compassion: Understanding and Extending Prosociality Under Crisis. Trends in Cognitive Sciences, 24(8), 587–589.  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tics.2020.05.006

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