Creating a Culture of Care

Check out our next complimentary regional training provided to Texas RTCs as a supplementary service related to TNOYS’  Hogg Foundation grant!:

May 13, 2013 Training: Trauma- Informed Care: Creating a Culture of Care

TNOYS is coordinating an initiative to reduce the use of seclusion and restraint at residential treatment centers by implementing trauma-informed practices. 

Research suggests that traumatic histories, both physical and emotional, are common among youth in residential treatment centers (RTCs), and systems of care that include seclusion and restraint are likely to re-traumatize residents already having trouble coping with their past experiences.

For the past decade, the Hogg Foundation at the University of Texas has participated in initiatives to instate systems of care that offer alternatives to seclusion and restraint.  Hogg is collaborating with TNOYS in a three-year grant to provide training and technical assistance to RTCs in Texas s seeking to implement the Six Core Strategies to Reduce the Use of Seclusion & Restraint.  These strategies are an evidence-based curriculum that focuses on “prevention of conflict and violence, the reduction in use of seclusion and restraint, the implementation of informed care principles, and the fullest possible inclusion of the client in his or her care.”[1]

In this program, TNOYS coordinates regional trainings featuring experts in the field of Trauma-Informed Care, open to all RTCs, as well as individualized technical assistance to a selected group of RTCs.

Recent training topics include:

• Neurobiological and Psychological Effects of Trauma
• Resiliency in the Helping Profession
• The Six Core Strategies to Reduce the Use of Seclusion & Restraint

Highlights of outcomes during the first year of the program:

~As reported by RTC staff:

• Less restraints and more communication
• Increased use of preventative measures
• Staff morale and attitudes are very much improved
• Elimination of “points” or “levels” systems

~As reported by youth:

• Feel more normal, more motivated
• Now it is just more relaxed and your body is not tense
• We care about each other more
• We can focus on our treatment

For more information on this initiative, including regional training dates, intensive site applications, and Trauma-Informed Care reference material, please contact info@tnoys.org.