Trauma Informed Practice in Child Welfare

Level: Advanced Practice – Social Workers, Supervisors, Managers

Credits: 6

Intended Audience: Course is intended for Child Welfare Social Workers, Supervisors, and Managers who work with families in the Child Welfare System

Description of Course: Course will address concepts of Trauma Informed Practice and their importance in regards to well being for children and families in the Child Welfare System.

Intended Objectives:

• Trainees will be able to recognize the importance of trauma-informed practices in achieving safety, permanency and well-being for children and families in the child welfare system.
• The trainee will be able to understand the term child traumatic stress and know what types of experiences constitute childhood trauma.
• Trainees will be able be able to understand the relationship between a child’s lifetime trauma history and his or her behaviors and responses.
• Trainees will be able to understand how cultural influences affect child development.
• Trainees will be able to recognize how child traumatic stress is exacerbated by ongoing stressors in a child’s environment and within the child welfare system (including placement changes and the loss associated with these events).
• Trainees will recognize the effects of birth parent trauma on the child and family and how they respond to services.
• Trainees will understand the importance of supporting resource parents in caring for traumatized children.
• Trainees will understand the impact of secondary traumatic stress on child welfare staff.

Topics Include:

• Trauma informed practices
• Child traumatic stress
• Cultural factors that influence child traumatic stress
• Understanding trauma triggers which could impact effectiveness with families in the in the Child Welfare System
• Secondary traumatic stress in child welfare staff