Equity-Focused, Trauma-Informed Policy Can Mitigate COVID-19’s Risks to Children’s Behavioral Health

Abstract

Both vulnerabilities to COVID-19 and childhood trauma have deep roots in health inequities. Children of color especially risk severe COVID-19 illness, with long-term effects that amplify existing health disparities, including trauma exposure. Similarly, children of color report more adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) than non-Hispanic White children. ACEs and other potentially traumatic events are associated with lifelong physical and psychological health problems. Policy must prioritize health equity (the absence of differences in health care access, quality, and outcomes based on ethnicity, race, and socioeconomic status). A trauma-informed approach emphasizes recovery and resilience. Principles of health equity can join with trauma-informed policy and practice for families and communities to help mitigate the effects of childhood trauma during the pandemic and beyond.

Raising Voice at School: Preliminary Effectiveness and Community Experience of Culture and Practice at an Australian Trauma-Responsive Specialist School

“…From the perspective of educators, there were a number of enablers of the schools' TR culture, including (a) the integration of TR knowledge into policies and practices [50][51][52]; (b) the need for synergy among TR knowledge, values, and practices of educators; (c) school leadership that is distributive [23] and modelled TR pedagogy and respect across the school community; (d) reflective practice; and relatedly, (e) an inquiry-based process to develop a shared and communicated vision, building trust, and a collaborative culture [67]. Many of these practices are central to Indigenous concepts of learning and teaching that build belonging, sense of place, and the dignity of community members [71][72][73].…”

“…Documentation: Reviews of Policies, Procedures, and Practice Manuals Following completion of interviews and focus groups, the school administration provided access to a range of online documentation (n = 17), including school mission, staff onboarding, discipline, safety protocols, strategic plan, mandatory staff training, practice manuals, de-identified attendance rates, incidents, and Individual Education Plans, along with survey and evaluation reports, as noted in Table 1. School operating systems, such as policies, procedures, and practice manuals, that align with TR principles are critical to implementing and sustaining TR practice [23,40,[49][50][51]. Documents were uploaded into NVivo and deductively coded against the Wisconsin Review Tool for School Policies, Protocols, Procedures & Documents: Examination Using a Trauma-Sensitive School Lens [52], which is framed by the five practice domains for trauma-informed care as described by Harris and Fallot [43], that is, safety, trustworthiness, collaboration, choice, and empowerment, and considers the degree to which TR principles and practices are reflected in the language and recommendations of school documentation and systems.…”