Title: 
Headings: Secondary Traumatic Stress Overview
Secondary
 
Traumatic
 
Stress
 
Overview
 

Definitions:
 

Common
 
Sources
 
of
 
Secondary
 
Traumatic
 
Stress:
 

Statistics:
 

How
 
to
 
recognize
 
it?
 

Affects:
 

Prevention:
  

Methods:
 

Current
 
Practices:
 


Content: decreased
 
exposure
 
by
 
dispersing
 
high
 
trauma
 
cases
 
among
 
workers; providing
 
staff
 
with
 
time
 
flexibility
 
for
 
self
 
care; and
 
debriefing
 
protocol. Current
 
Practices: States
 
have
 
an
 
array
 
of
 
approaches
 
and
 
varying
 
degrees
 
of
 
addressing
 
Secondary
 
Trauma
 
among
 
caseworkers. These
 
approaches
 
include: EAPs,
 
voluntary
 
STS
 
training,
 
new
 
hire
 
mandatory
 
trainings,
 
supervisor
 
STS
 
training,
 
as
 
well
 
as
 
ongoing
 
trainings
 
and
 
peer
 
support
 
groups. A
 
systemic
 
approach
 
appears
 
to
 
be
 
most
 
effective
 
in
 
prevention
 
of
 
STS
 
and
 
in
 
turn
 
has
 
created
 
lower
 
turnover
 
rates. In
 
order
 
to
 
be
 
effective,
 
change
 
must
 
come
 
from
 
the
 
top. Leadership’s
 
validation
 
of
 
the
 
issue
 
and
 
support
 
in
 
addressing
 
it
 
will
 
allow
 
workers
 
to
 
feel
 
that
 
they
 
are
 
respected
 
and
 
supported.