Taking a trauma-informed approach

Principles of a trauma-informed approach

There is no single way to provide a trauma-informed approach in your workplace. However, the core principles below highlight factors to consider in creating a trauma-informed approach. They may be particularly important if your workplace offers services or supports to people who have experienced trauma, or if workers are exposed to emotionally impactful events regularly.

Understanding trauma and its impact – A trauma-informed approach recognises the prevalence of trauma and understands the impact of trauma on the emotional, psychological and social wellbeing of individuals and communities. 

Promoting safety – A trauma-informed approach promotes safety by establishing a safe physical, psychological and emotional environment. 

Supporting control, choice and autonomy – A trauma-informed approach values and respects the individual, their choices and autonomy, their culture and their values. It builds on people’s strengths and empowers them. This can apply to both your workers as well as how your organisation provides services. For example, if you need to speak with a client, offer them even small choices such as when they speak with you. 

Ensuring cultural competence – A trauma-informed approach respects diversity and uses interventions tailored to cultural backgrounds. For example, educate yourself about the cultural groups you work with. 

Promoting safe and healing relationships – A trauma-informed approach fosters healing relationships and promotes collaborative, strengths-based practice that values a person’s expertise and judgement. For example, when working with individuals, thank them for their time and expertise that they may be sharing with you.

Sharing power and governance – A trauma-informed approach recognises the impact of power and governance and ensures that they are shared. This principle is closely related to offering choice. 

Understanding recovery is possible – A trauma-informed approach understands recovery is possible for everyone regardless of how vulnerable they may appear. 

Integrating care – A trauma-informed approach maintains a holistic view of people and their recovery process and facilitates communication within and among service providers and systems.

A trauma-informed approach acknowledges the trauma some people have experienced in their lives, and is based on principles such as offering people choice, promoting safety (including cultural safety), sharing power and supporting recovery.

Taking an organisational approach

Trauma-informed approaches are based on doing no harm to people experiencing trauma. Trauma-informed services do not blame people for their traumatic reactions, instead they see trauma survivors as people who have experienced extremely abnormal situations and have managed as best they could. They also embrace a message of hope and emphasise strength-building and skill acquisition. 

As with many initiatives, an organisational-wide approach helps create a culture that can support people who may have experienced trauma. Areas to consider in an organisational approach include: 

• Governance, management and leadership – Managers and leaders are aware of the impacts of trauma and implement leadership and organisational change practices that are consistent with the principles of a trauma-informed care and practice approach.
• Organisational policies and structure – Policies and procedures reflect trauma-informed values and principles, and incorporate them in all aspects of policy, administration, practice and service delivery.
• Participation of workers – Workers and those in the organisation play an active role in co-designing all aspects of service planning, implementation and evaluation.
• Direct services to consumers – All services are sensitive to and responsive to trauma whatever the service context.
• Healthy and effective workforce – Organisations educate and train workers on applying trauma-informed care.  
• Outcomes and evaluation – Organisations collect data concerning outcomes for service users.
• Person-centred care – Organisations view individuals as people and not illnesses or disorders to treat and manage. This approach prioritises a deep understanding of the person and what matters to them, based on a relationship of trust and respect.

An organisation-wide trauma-informed approach starts with top management acknowledging trauma and filters through the rest of the organisation—workers, their families, customers and suppliers.