H2

FAMILY-CENTERED TREATMENT FOR TRAUMA: EVIDENCE-BASED APPLICATIONS FOR DISASTER, MEDICAL AND MILITARY SETTINGS

Presenters: William Saltzman

Abstract Category: Research  

Instruction Level: Intermediate

Presentation: Not Provided

Description:      

The UCLA Trauma Psychiatry Program has developed and is piloting a  new model for family-based trauma treatment.  This model will be presented with case studies drawn from post-disaster, medical and military applications.

Abstract:

Recent research has highlighted the importance of family involvement in minimizing the deleterious impact of trauma exposure on children and in providing an optimal context for trauma recovery.  A new family-based program currently being piloted in multiple settings with families contending with wartime deployment, disasters, and medical trauma will be presented. 

The FOCUS Program (Families Overcoming and Coping Under Stress) was developed by the UCLA Trauma Psychiatry Program and includes manualized guidelines for conducting a sequence of parent, child and family sessions designed to provide trauma psychoeducation, facilitate family communication, cohesion, and mutual support, and facilitate the development of family coping skills. The intervention draws upon cognitive and behavioral principles, a family systemic model, and an approach to enhancing family communication via shared narratives.

It has been piloted at the UCLA Medical Center, Miller Children's Hospital, at Camp Pendleton with Marine families enduring wartime deployments, and is currently being used in New Orleans for First Responder families impacted by Hurricane Katrina.

Clinical case examples will be provided along with preliminary data from field trials. Discussion will ensue regarding the key therapeutic elements and applicability to various settings and populations.

LEARNING OBJECTIVES:

Understand the ways in which the family is central to the prevention and treatment of childhood traumatic stress.

Be familiar with the core elements and application of two ground-breaking family-focused programs currently being piloted in the Network.