The term “trauma-informed care” has become ubiquitous in our world, but especially among those involved in the field of mental health treatment. Even if you’re not a trauma expert, if you work in the mental health field, it’s essential to have some baseline knowledge of best practices for trauma treatment.
If you’re a mental health therapist or practitioner, knowing the ins and outs of trauma-informed care is necessary for competent practice. Below, we’ll discuss what you need to know most when offering therapy for trauma.
What is trauma-informed care?
As the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) explains, trauma-informed care emphasizes the approach of asking patients, “What happened to you?” rather than asking, “What’s wrong with you?”
Put simply, trauma-informed care recognizes the effects that traumas like abuse and violence can have on people. In addition, trauma-informed approaches are designed to identify symptoms of trauma, provide appropriate trauma treatments, and avoid re-traumatization of patients seeking treatment.
Essential trauma-informed practices
If you want to ensure you’re following principles of trauma-informed care, the following practices are essential:
- Creating safe environments: Physical and emotional safety are critical for patients with a history of trauma. This means that waiting rooms should be quiet and have welcoming signage. Once patients enter your office, they should be treated with care and compassion by everyone they encounter. So, support staff such as receptionists should also be trained in trauma-informed care. It’s also important for patients to have easy access to exits, so they do not feel trapped within therapy rooms.
- Giving patients a voice: Trauma-informed approaches view patients as being central to the treatment-planning process. Rather than dictating interventions with little patient input, trauma-informed therapists actively involve patients in the process of making decisions about treatment. If you want to be truly trauma-informed, you should seek patient input about preferred interventions and ask for regular feedback about how treatment is working for them.
- Universal trauma screening: Sometimes, patients with a traumatic history do not identify trauma as their primary reason for seeking treatment. Perhaps they are coming to you for a seemingly unrelated issue, like depression or relationship problems. Regardless of the presenting problem, it’s important to screen all clients for trauma history. By doing this, you can tailor your interventions if needed.
- Learning evidence-based practices: Competent practice is a core component of professional ethics. Given that you may encounter patients with trauma histories, it’s imperative to receive training in evidence-based trauma treatments. Much of the research supports EMDR and trauma-focused CBT as being the most effective interventions for treating trauma. Therapists and practitioners seeking competence in trauma interventions would be wise to become proficient in these therapeutic modalities.
- Addressing staff needs: Therapists providing services to those with trauma may have their own trauma histories. Regularly engaging with people affected by trauma can also cause secondary traumatic stress. Given these facts, a true trauma-informed practice will also address staff needs. Strategies for doing so include providing training on secondary traumatic stress, encouraging staff to explore their own trauma histories, allowing time off for mental health, and encouraging healthy practices like exercise, relaxation, and meditation.
Trauma-Informed Services at Bridge to Balance
At Bridge to Balance, our clinicians are trained in trauma-informed treatment modalities, including EMDR and Sandtray Therapy. We offer individual and group services for both youth and adults. We also offer training and webinars for mental health professionals looking to become competent in trauma-informed care. In New Jersey, we have offices in Voorhees, Hamilton, and Piscataway, and we recently opened an office in Portland, Maine. Visit our webpage today to connect with us.