PAST EVENTS

ASTPHSW 2nd Annual Training Institute on Trauma-Affected Women, Children and Families: Supporting Strengths and Restoring Resiliency in Public Health, Mental Health, and Social Service Systems

Description: The US Department of Health and Human Services Region II Office on Women’s Health has launched a new initiative to provide professional education and training on trauma as a women’s health issue. Education is conducted through multi-disciplinary training institutes, which use public health principles to address the needs of trauma-affected women, children, and families. These training institutes present evidence-based best practice strategies and target mental health, health, and social service professionals in order to provide trauma-informed care in public health, mental health, and social service systems.

Co-sponsor for this Training Institute is The Association of State and Territorial Public Health Social Workers (ASTPHSW), an affiliate of The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO). The purpose of ASTPHSW is to foster continuing education and conduct forums to enhance public health social work services. One of ASTPHSW’s objectives is to support activities where individuals can exchange ideas, share information and discuss mutual concerns and objectives in public health social work by sponsoring conferences, trainings and collaborations with other partners.

ASTPHSW is composed of State Directors of Public Health Social Work, key social workers who work in public health agencies and faculty of schools of social work and public health. Regular members must be appointed by the State Health Officer and Associate Members are social workers who are involved in public health or social work education. Attendees at this Training Institute are invited to join ASTPHSW.

Overview: Building on recent research findings, this Training Institute recognizes trauma as a crosscutting issue that has particularly adverse affects on women, children and families. The second in a series of trainings sponsored by the US Department of Health and Human Services, Region II Office on Women’s Health, the current Training Institute provides education, training, and partnerships to respond to the needs of trauma-affected individuals and populations. By ‘trauma-affected,’ we refer to those individuals and populations who may have had current experiences or histories of domestic violence, sexual violence, child abuse, mental illness, suicide survival, addictions, HIV/AIDS, incarceration, war, social, cultural, religious conflict, natural disasters, emergencies, or human-caused disaster, including terrorism. This Training Institute will explore the unique problems and innovative, evidence-based solutions for trauma-affected women, children, and families and promote ‘trauma-informed care’ across public health, mental health, and social service systems.

The Goal of the Training Institute is to provide greater trauma-informed care for women, children, and families across public health, mental health, and social service systems. The Institute will do so by using public health principles and approaches to present evidence-based best practice strategies and developing trauma knowledge and skill sets of a multidisciplinary group of professionals.

The Learning Objectives of the Training Institute are to enhance the current skill sets of public health, mental health, and social service professionals by:

a) Strengthening their capacity to screen for and identify trauma-affected women, children, and families whenever and wherever these consumers present for services;

b) Building their abilities to provide appropriate assessment, care, treatment and referrals for trauma-affected individuals and populations; and

c) Developing partnerships to foster an understanding of trauma and its impact on individuals and populations, and support efforts to provide trauma-responsive care across service systems.