This self-paced course will require about 3 hours per week. You can log on any time during the week, but we encourage you to finish the week’s assignment within that week. You will be in a section with up to 12 other participants with an instructor guiding the course. All materials are provided electronically. Upon successful completion, you will receive 13 NBCC-approved CE hours.

Online Course Outline

The purpose of this course is to provide an overview of the foundations and treatment of childhood traumatic stress.

Module 1 What is Trauma and how is it Experienced by Children?

1. Types of stress: positive stress, tolerable stress, and toxic stress
2. Types of trauma: Type I, Type II, Type III, Indirect exposure contributing to professional burnout, vicarious trauma, and secondary trauma
3. Child maltreatment: society’s view of children, child protection mandates, and prevalence of child maltreatment

Module 2 Child Development

1. Normal child development: physical, cognitive, self and others, behavioral, and he effects of trauma on child development
2. Brain development: normal development and how it affected by acute trauma and complex trauma
3. Trauma Memory: implicit and explicit

Module 3 Effects of Psychological Trauma Experienced by Children

1. Central nervous system, peripheral nervous system, sensory-somatic nervous system, and autonomic nervous system
2. Parts of the brain: brain stem, limbic system, and cerebral cortex
3. Trauma impact on child development: cognitive, affective, behavioral, and somatic-physiological

Module 4 Children’s Reaction to Traumatic Stress

1. Coping strategies: adaptive and maladaptive
2. Counterfactual thinking: cognitive restructuring
3. Self-blame
4. Meaning-making
5. Posttraumatic growth

Module 5 Assessment, Diagnosis, and Treatment

1. Diagnostic Statistical Manual (DSM): history, changes in DSM-5
2. Comorbidity
3. Evidence-based assessment instruments: administering, interpreting, and use in treatment planning
4. History of trauma treatment with children: TF-CBT, family therapy, play therapy, and expressive arts therapy

Module 6 Other Treatment Considerations

1. Role of the non-offending caregiver: effects of trauma, family dysfunction, and attachment
2. Engaging children and caregivers: the first session, duration of treatment, and treatment planning
3. Additional considerations: ethical issues

Learning Objectives

By the end of training participants will be able to:

1. Compare and contrast types of stress: positive stress, tolerable stress, and toxic stress
2. Compare and contrast categories of trauma: acute trauma, complex trauma, and chronic trauma
3. Gain an understanding of how indirect exposure to traumatic experiences contributes to professional burnout, vicarious trauma, and secondary trauma
4. Appreciate major research and important historical literature on the prevalence of child maltreatment, society’s view of children, and child protection mandates
5. Compare and contrast normal child development (physical, cognitive, self and others, and behavioral) and the impact trauma can have on child development
6. Compare and contrast normal brain development and how it is affected by acute and complex trauma
7. Conceptualize the roles implicit and explicit memory play in the encoding process of traumatic experiences
8. Demonstrate a working knowledge of the roles the central nervous system, the peripheral nervous system, the sensory-somatic nervous system, and the autonomic nervous system play in the symptoms of traumatic stress and their management
9. Identify how the brain stem, limbic system, and cerebral cortex can impact brain development of traumatized children and adolescents
10. Gain an understanding of adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies adopted by traumatized children and adolescents
11. Demonstrate a working knowledge of administering, scoring, and interpreting evidence-based clinical assessment instruments and their application in the treatment planning of traumatized children and adolescents
12. Appreciate major research and important historical literature through the evolution of treatment protocols to utilize with traumatized children and adolescents
13. Understand the role of non-offending caregivers in the therapeutic process
14. Articulate ways of engaging children and adolescents and maintaining their participation in the therapeutic process
15. Recognize the unique ethical issues associated with the treatment of minors
16. Compare and contrast evidence-based interventions, common factors, and emerging trends for effective treatment of traumatized children and adolescents
17. Demonstrate a working knowledge of DSM-V diagnostic criteria for posttraumatic stress disorder
18. Identify the elements of various interview protocols (e.g., semi-structured interview and mental status exam) as they apply to the treatment of traumatized children and adolescents
19. Demonstrate a working knowledge of the importance of incorporating play activities and expressive art materials in the assessment and treatment of very young children
20. Articulate specific principles and practices for treating traumatized children/adolescents, comparing and contrasting these with those for adults
21. Demonstrate procedural understanding of protocols and methods to establish stabilization and the processing of traumatic memories with children, adolescents and their families

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