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Child Welfare Caseworker and Trainer Perspectives on Initial Implementation of a Trauma-Informed Practice Approach

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Abstract

Children involved in the foster care system are at risk of experiencing traumatic events, which can lead to negative outcomes for youth. Child welfare service providers are tasked with providing trauma-responsive services to youth in foster care; yet, the trauma-related needs of youth are often under-identified and undertreated. This study’s purpose was to examine the initial implementation of a trauma-responsive approach from the perspective of frontline child welfare workers and trainers. We sought to further knowledge on how the competency drivers of staff selection/hiring, training, coaching, and fidelity facilitate or inhibit initial implementation. We conducted focus groups with workers (n = 28) and semi-structured interviews with trainers (n = 6) implementing a new trauma-responsive assessment and case planning approach. Transcripts were coded and analyzed using thematic analysis. Using competency drivers as a guide, several facilitators and barriers were identified. Overall, workers and trainers identified each of the four competency drivers as key to the uptake of the new practice approach. Our findings highlight the need for agencies implementing new practices to provide critical supports to frontline workers during implementation, such as specialized support positions and mechanisms for structure and accountability, and emphasize the importance of post-training support (e.g., coaching).

Highlights

  • This study examined the initial implementation of a trauma-responsive assessment and case planning approach from the perspective of frontline child welfare workers and trainers.

  • Participants identified the competency drivers of staff selection/hiring, training, coaching, and fidelity as important to implementation.

  • Interactive, hands-on trainings aided in workers learning the new trauma-responsive approach.

  • Participants desired follow up post-training, including guidance for applying the new approach, identifying “go-to people” for ongoing support; and workers indicated supervisors play a key role in the uptake of a new practice.

  • While participants identified the trauma-responsive assessment and case planning approach as beneficial for children and families, workers felt overwhelmed by their workload, which limited their abilities to implement the new practice to fidelity.

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Acknowledgements

This manuscript was part of the Kansas Assessment Permanency Project (KAPP), which was funded by the Children’s Bureau, Administration on Children, Youth and Families, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, under grant number 90-CO-1120. The article’s contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Children’s Bureau. The authors also wish to thank their community collaborators in this study: the Kansas Department for Children and Families, KVC Kansas, and Saint Francis Ministries.

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  1. University of Kansas School of Social Welfare, Lawrence, KS, USA

    Stacy Dunkerley, Becci A. Akin, Jody Brook & Kim Bruns

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  1. Stacy Dunkerley
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  2. Becci A. Akin
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Correspondence to Stacy Dunkerley.

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Dunkerley, S., Akin, B.A., Brook, J. et al. Child Welfare Caseworker and Trainer Perspectives on Initial Implementation of a Trauma-Informed Practice Approach. J Child Fam Stud 30, 1082–1096 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10826-021-01935-1

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