Teaching Professionals about Trauma-Informed Practice for Children and their Families: a Toolkit for Practitioners

Abstract

Trauma-informed care has become the gold standard for treating children and families who have been exposed to traumatic events. However, it is not always clear to practitioners what such care involves. This article describes a training program for professionals designed by the Haruv Institute in Jerusalem, Israel, which teaches the elements of trauma-informed interventions. The program includes theoretical knowledge regarding trauma and its effects on children and parents and parenting, as well as skills that may be employed when working with this population. It is presented as a toolkit whose various elements may be added to the professional’s therapeutic repertoire. This training program has been well received and, for many, is considered a “game changer” regarding how professionals see their therapeutic role. However, it often creates a need for more intensive training in some of the elements of the intervention, such as talking with children about trauma, psycho-educational groups, and interventions that promote emotional regulation. Thus, the trauma-informed training program may be seen as a base to which additional, more advanced training modules may be added.