Understanding How to Support and Build Resilience within Community Leaders

Prolonged exposure to community violence coupled with the demands of being a community leader may increase stress and negatively impact physical and mental health.  Community leaders living in high-crime, high-poverty neighborhoods often support individuals who have faced significant traumas (i.e., abuse, violence, mental illness, death), and may experience vicarious trauma.  The purpose of our research was to understand how to support and build resilience in community leaders working and living in these environments, as doing so is vital for their physical and mental health, and for overall community well-being.   Using a series of focus groups and pre/post survey assessments with a group of 13 community leaders from a community networking organization in Philadelphia, we identified types of stressors and coping strategies.  We delivered an introductory Sanctuary Model training and worked with the leaders to develop a trauma-informed training plan for the community.  Key findings of this research included community leaders describing positive and negative emotions regarding their community and residents, lack of self-care, and multiple physical and mental stressors.   The Professional Quality of Life (PROQOL) was administered and findings demonstrated that this group of leaders exhibited high compassion, low burnout and low secondary trauma.  Next steps in this research will be discussed as community leaders described the need for additional training.   Understanding how to build resilience in current and emerging community leaders living and working in these underserved neighborhoods is vital as they are a front line community resource.