Implementing a trauma-informed system of care: An analysis of learning collaborative outcomes

Abstract

Trauma exposure can negatively impact health. Trauma-informed care implementation within health care systems may improve the identification and treatment of trauma-related illness on a population health level. The current study investigated outcomes of a multiagency implementation of trauma-informed care for Medicaid-enrolled adults and children in 23 rural Pennsylvania (United States) counties. Changes in trauma symptom screening, the number of staff trained in trauma-informed care, and clinician confidence in using trauma-informed care were assessed in participating treatment agencies (N = 22) over the course of a 15-month trauma-informed care learning collaborative (TLC). Data included monthly agency-reported screening, training, and confidence outcomes, which were analyzed using repeated-measures analyses of variance. Trauma symptom screening rates improved from 41.1% (SD = 43.0%) to 93.3% (SD = 12.0), p