Abstract / Summary
Abstract Objective Six months of Trauma Informed Systems Change training, coaching and consultation, for a multi-state housing nonprofit that serves over 14,000 families per year, was found to result in changes to practices and policies and increased safety, increased awareness, recognition and prevention of stress and trauma. The objective of this article is to demonstrate how effective and intentional trauma informed systems change training (which considers those being served by a system and those who serve in a system) can positively impact individuals and organizations meaningfully and sustainably. Methods From February 1 through February 28, 2025, a trauma informed environmental scan of over 35 core policies were reviewed, observations made and recommendations for policy and practice changes offered. From February 2025 through May 2025, 450 housing staff completed a 6-hour virtual trauma informed training that covered the neuroscience of stress, fear and trauma, vicarious trauma and healing, organizational trauma and healing, trauma informed leaders and leadership and application of trauma informed principles to people and systems. Each participant was given a 59-item Survey for Trauma Informed Systems Change (STISC) pre-survey via RedCap a day prior to the training, and upon completion of the training was sent a STISC post-survey. Two hundred fifteen completed pre-survey subscales and 28 completed post-survey subscales. From May 2025 to August 2025, a governance structure was established for a Trauma Informed Care Taskforce and a process developed to recruit 24 staff members from across all 14 states and disciplines within the agency to make a yearlong commitment to participate. These recruited staff were also paid stipends above their salary for their time and expertise. This aspect of the consultation is critical because it establishes institutional memory and codifies the trauma informed change process. Results Scores on the STISC self-assessed knowledge and attitudes and training, support, interaction, and environment subscales increased significantly after training (p < 0.001 and p = 0.02 respectively after multiple testing correction). There were no significant changes in safety and acceptance at work, system-wide knowledge and attitudes, and awareness of cultural background at work subscale scores. Conclusions The organizational trauma-informed change process that The Community Builders, Inc. has adopted is worthy of sharing, as similar institutions may benefit from having a window into a process that has proven effective to date as leadership is reimagined and greater trust is built among all community members through consistent communication, full transparency, intentional inclusion of widely diverse voices, and a focus on safety and mattering.