Child Fatalities – What About the Trauma

Level: Advanced Practice – Lineworker

Credit:6

Intended Audience: This training is designed for social workers and supervisors who are interested in learning about proactive and reactive strategies to assist workers, units and supervisors when a child dies that has or is active to the child welfare system.

Intended objectives:

• Identify systemic and individual responses to a child fatality
• Identify symptoms of vicarious trauma
• Development of a plan if a fatality occurs
• Identify promising and evidence based practices for addressing child fatalities

Topics include:

• Review of the literature on child fatalities and systems response
• Discussion of child fatalities impact on self, unit, and organization
• Review and strategize on ameliorating the impact of a child fatality of affected individuals

CalSWEC Competencies Addressed:

2.14 Student understands the importance of working collaboratively with biological families, foster families, and kin networks, and understands the need to involve them in assessment and planning and supporting them in coping with special stresses and difficulties.

2.15 Student understands the value base of the profession and its ethical standards and principles, and practices accordingly.

2.17 Student demonstrates the ability to assess his or her own emotional responses to clients, co-workers and situations in which the worker’s values are challenged.

4.1 Student is aware of organizational risk management issues and is able to appropriately resolve situations that might prove harmful to themselves or others.

4.2 Student is aware of potential stress factors in the organizational environment and workplace activities and is able to develop self-care and other strategies to render them harmless.

ASFA Outcomes Addressed:

• Safety
• Well Being