ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: Research shows elevated rates of trauma exposure and traumatic stress among youth with suicidal thoughts and behaviors, underscoring the need for a trauma-informed approach to suicide prevention and intervention. The purpose of this study was to identify, from the perspective of caregivers, clinical practices that are sensitive to the needs of youth with co-occurring traumatic stress and suicidal thoughts and behaviors, as well as common barriers to receiving care. METHOD: Qualitative interviews were conducted with 13 caregivers of youth with trauma histories and comorbid suicidal thoughts and/or behaviors. Interviews were analyzed using a grounded theory approach. RESULTS: Qualitative analysis of interviews revealed themes related to the need for caregiver involvement in treatment, the impact of therapist and relationship characteristics such as authenticity and genuineness, and the importance of provider education about trauma. Common barriers included difficulties navigating the mental health system and cost. CONCLUSIONS: Findings provide guidance on how mental health providers can effectively recognize and respond to traumatic stress among youth presenting with suicidal thoughts and behaviors. System-level issues related to accessibility also are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).
Subject(s)
Caregivers , Suicide Prevention , Adolescent , Caregivers/psychology , Humans , Mental Health , Suicidal IdeationABSTRACT
Child and adolescent exposure to potential trauma experiences is pervasive. Given the prevalence, deleterious mental and physical effects, and economic cost of trauma exposure, child- and family-service systems are adopting trauma-informed approaches, including practices like trauma screening. Although a number of trauma-focused screening and assessment measures exist for youth, the majority are lengthy and inappropriate for universal administration. This study describes the development and preliminary validation of the Traumatic Stress Screen for Children and Adolescents (TSSCA), a six-item screening measure for trauma exposure and traumatic stress symptoms. Using two samples of youth presenting at community practice settings (n1 = 134, n2 = 137), reliability, discriminative validity, and criterion-related validity were calculated for the TSSCA. Results support the TSSCA as an empirically derived, reliable, and valid screening measure for exposure to trauma and symptoms of traumatic stress for youth ages 7 to 18.
Subject(s)
Mass Screening/methods , Psychiatric Status Rating Scales/standards , Stress Disorders, Traumatic/diagnosis , Surveys and Questionnaires/standards , Adolescent , Child , Female , Humans , Male , Psychometrics , Reproducibility of Results , Sensitivity and Specificity , Trauma and Stressor Related DisordersABSTRACT
This study systematically examined child-service providers' conceptualizations of trauma-informed practice (TIP) across service systems, including child welfare, juvenile justice, mental health, and education. Eleven focus groups and nine individual interviews were conducted, totaling 126 child-service providers. Conventional content analysis was used to analyze the qualitative data with interrater reliability analyses indicating near perfect agreement between coders. Qualitative analysis revealed that child-service providers identified traumatic stress as an important common theme among children and families served as well as the interest in TIP in their service systems. At the same time, child-service providers generally felt knowledgeable about what they define TIP to be, although they articulated wide variations in the degree to which they are taught skills and strategies to respond to their traumatized clients. The results of this study suggest a need for a common lexicon and metric with which to advance TIP within and across child-service systems.
