A few weeks ago, I wrote a post about being your best and that your best will change from moment to moment, day to day, and year to year. As humans, we each have our unique personalities and characteristics. We don’t need to fix ourselves; we need to learn and practice skills that allow us to be who we are.

Over the past year, we’ve witnessed a significant departure of staff from the helping professions. In a recent meeting with social service agencies, a leader reported a staggering 60% vacancy rate. Even in schools, we’ve seen teachers leaving their positions mid-year due to stress and burnout. This is a pressing issue that demands our immediate attention. 

Practicing well-being skills can be the individual’s responsibility and supported by organizational values and goals. An organization that understands the effects of trauma and stress on people and promotes well-being and self-care activities for the staff yet makes unrealistic demands and expectations for productivity are not walking the talk. Traumatic events and toxic stress are the contributors to burnout. According to research on trauma, 90% of adults experience a traumatic event at least once in their lives. Trauma can be any perceived harm with adverse effects on one’s functioning or well-being (SAMSHA).

What is a Trauma-Informed Organization?

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a trauma-informed organization strives to meet four criteria:

1. Realize the widespread impact of trauma
2. Recognize the signs and symptoms of trauma
3. Responds by fully integrating knowledge about trauma into practice and 
4. Actively resists retraumatization.

Implementing the 4R framework can be a transformative, multi-year journey for any organization or school. This approach, which includes strategic planning, training, coaching, and collaboration among leadership and staff, has the potential to significantly improve the well-being and resilience of your workplace. 

What can organizations do to support a Trauma-Informed, Resilient workplace?

1. Understand how trauma and toxic stress can affect yourself and your staff. Everyone in leadership must deeply understand the N.E.A.R. Science model, Neurobiology, Epigenetics, Adverse Childhood Expereinces (ACEs), and Resilience to put in place the protective factors needed for staff.

2. Review the policies in place and identify changes that need to be made that align with the 4R’s framework. 

3. Create safety: physical and emotional safety is one of the key principles of a trauma-informed, resilient workplace. Establish safety by promoting a “culture of wellness” that moves an organization from burnout to resilience. This culture of wellness can be fostered through regular check-ins, open communication, and providing resources for self-care.

4. Skills development to build staff resources and resilience. These can include emotional intelligence training, communication workshops, and wellness practices. These skills allow us to understand and gain insight into others and ourselves.

These four points are a starting point to help leaders set the tone for the organization’s culture and develop a path to supporting everyone within it.

Change takes time; however, interventions from the organizational level have the highest impact and require thoughtful planning. This is a real paradigm shift. It is changing the way organizations or schools support families, children, and youth to prevent the exit of highly qualified professionals affected by burnout.

Leadership commitment is crucial on the path to a trauma-informed, resilient organization or school. This commitment not only fosters a supportive workplace for staff but also paves the way for the growth and well-being of the clients we serve. It’s a mission-driven responsibility that we, as leaders in the helping profession, must uphold. 

If you are looking for a place to start on the path to a Trauma-Informed, Resilient organization or school, please reach out to see how we can collaborate on the journey.