The Substance Abuse and Medical Health Services Administration in the US (SAMHSA) provides a list of 6 trauma- informed principles:
- Safety
- Trustworthiness and Transparency
- Peer Support
- Collaboration and Mutuality
- Empowerment, Voice and Choice
- Cultural, Historical, and Gender Issues
Other similar sets of guidelines have been published however Meagan Corrado argues the following should also be kept in mind when providing trauma informed care to clients:
- There is no formula for trauma-informed care.
- Trauma informed care requires that we renounce an “us versus them” approach and acknowledge that we are all in this together.
- Going to one trauma training does not make an individual or an organisation trauma-informed.
- Trauma informed care is just as much about the staff as it is about the clients.
- Being trauma informed does not necessarily mean that you have to directly talk to clients about the traumas they have been through.
- Being trauma informed does not mean that we have to be perfect.
Read more here.
And read more about SAMHSA’s concept and guidance for a Trauma-Informed approach here