On request training

Opportunity description

This course examines practice strategies for supporting children who have disclosed trauma or abuse directly to you or another person, or children who you know have experienced trauma or abuse.

Feelings of self-blame and secrecy are common following physical or sexual violence. These feelings are often exacerbated by adult perpetrators, whose tactics are designed to make children feel complicit in their negative experiences. The strategies and activities outlined in this course aim to help children move away from self-blame and secrecy towards contextual and overt understandings of the power misuses that led to their experience of trauma.

This session will cover

The course will examine the four P’s of helping children move beyond self-blame following experiences of abuse:

Power – helping children to recognise the power differences between children and adults; and in cases of abuse, how adults use tactics to manipulate children and accentuate their powerlessness to ensure the abuse remains a secret.

Protest – how to make visible children’s actions during their experience of trauma and abuse, through the assumption that nobody is a passive recipient of abuse. This involves a consideration of the steps that children take in the interests of their own safety and the safety or wellbeing of other people in their lives.

Purpose – in developing a clear purpose, practitioners avoid children recounting traumatic experiences for unclear or unknown reasons. Practitioners explain to children and parents why they are interested in the retelling of particular events, and are committed to listening for examples of children’s resilience, hope and connection.

Participation – helping children to fully participate in their engagement with you by ensuring that adult language and communication don’t get in the way. Allowing for genuine participation will safeguard against children becoming overly distressed in the professional setting, as they become involved in negotiating what, when and how topics are discussed. Genuine participation will support children to tell their stories where they have communication or developmental challenges or delays.

Eligibility criteria

This course follows on from two previous Emerging Minds online courses: The impact of trauma on the child and Supporting children who have experienced trauma.

The impact of trauma on the child introduces key understandings about trauma and adversity, and the impact of these on children. It explores the ways in which a child might respond to trauma, and how children and families can recover from trauma. It describes a trauma-aware approach to supporting children who have experienced trauma or adversity and invites you to reflect on how you can integrate this into your interactions with children.

Supporting children who have experienced trauma focuses on the early stages of engagement, acknowledging that children who have experienced trauma are often ambivalent or anxious about sharing their stories. It explores five perspective shifts practitioners can use to demonstrate curious and collaborative practices with children and their families. These shifts can help to support families as they experience therapeutic engagement in new ways, and help them to value their strengths, know-how and stories of resilience.

Categories: Capability 9 - Delivering holistic and collaborative assessment and care planning, Capability 8 - Working effectively with families, carers and supporters, Capability 4 - Understanding and responding to trauma, Working with infants, children, and younger persons
Disciplines: Allied Health, Medical, Nursing
Levels: Intermediate, Advanced
Lifespans: Infant, Child

3 hours

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Provided by Emerging Minds
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