Lamont Adams, 16, was born, raised and died within a 2-mile geographic area in one of North Philadelphia's most violent neighborhoods. His legacy might have been no more than a murder statistic - and memories his beloved grandmother cherished of the sweet child she raised since he was a baby.
Lamont knew his future was sealed when he "snitched" to police someone he played dice with was armed. In fact, his grandmother reported, after his death, she found a paper napkin on which he'd written the beginning of his obituary. The teen avoided the streets for a day or two after talking to police, but when he went out in public again, he was gunned down. He was shot 14 times from a 45-caliber handgun and had 24 bullet holes all over his body. Found in a fetal position but still breathing, Lamont was transported to Temple University Hospital (TUH) where top-notch trauma professionals did their best to save him. After 15 minutes, he was pronounced dead. That was in 2005.
Trauma Chief's Innovation
Since February 2006, more than 2,500 Philadelphia urban teens, ages 12-18, have visited Temple's trauma department to attend "From Cradle to Grave," a 3-hour show and tell, "keeping it real" program, aimed at decreasing the high incidence of fatal gun shot wounds... The innovation of Temple chief trauma surgeon, Amy Goldberg, MD, whose team treats more than 500 gunshot wounds annually, the program is presented by trauma outreach coordinator, Scott Charles. In 2008, Temple treated more than 490 patients for gunshot wounds, Campbell reported...
Up Close & Personal
...Besides the voluntary student attendees from neighborhood schools, other program attendees come from the criminal justice system. Some have been mandated to attend the program by the courts or the Juvenile Justice System, Charles said. Whether voluntary or not, the program intends to open the eyes of participants about the very real effects of violence.The group of students walked to the trauma department where Charles recreated Lamont's brief hospitalization and death. It's clear the veteran instructor wanted to make the students comfortable and yet needs to provide instruction. He told them the purpose of the program and how he expected them to ask questions and interact.
"I don't want this to be a boring TV program and you can't even change the channel," he said. He also issues a warning instruction: "If you feel like you are going to faint, sit down."
Written with such fury and also genuine caring! Thanks Jen it's a most important blog with a even more important message given.
Thursday, April 16th 2009 at 7:15PM
MIISRAEL Bride
