Domestic Violence Coalitions’ Needs Assessment Survey Report
In 2012, the National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma & Mental Health, in collaboration with the National Network to End Domestic Violence, conducted a nationwide needs assessment of state, territory, and District of Columbia domestic violence coalitions to identify training and TA priorities, as well as to gather information on trauma-informed work being done at the coalition and program levels. The Domestic Violence Coalitions’ Needs Assessment Survey Report summarizes the results of this survey, describing state-level collaborations and policy work, the availability of culturally specific services, barriers and challenges faced, supports coalitions provide to member programs, and the impact of training and TA on coalitions and programs. This survey was conducted as part of a multi-year effort by NCDVTMH to provide support to coalitions as they work to assist their member programs in developing accessible, trauma-informed, culturally relevant domestic violence services and organizations.
Domestic Violence Coalitions’ Needs Assessment Survey Report
Multi-Site Initiative Report: Building Capacity to Support Survivors Who Experience Trauma-Related Mental Health and Substance Use Needs
In 2008, NCDVTMH received funding from the Family Violence Prevention & Services Program (FVPSP), ACYF, HHS, to begin partnerships with the domestic violence coalitions in Delaware, Kansas, Alabama, Idaho, and New Hampshire, and with Transformation Detroit, an urban community domestic violence collaborative. Three of the coalitions—Alabama, Idaho, and New Hampshire—were the recipients of FVPSP-funded Open Doors to Safety grants designed to support their work in this area. These partnerships formed the first NCDVTMH Multi-Site Initiative, which operated from 2008 to 2011.
The goals of the partners were to support local domestic violence programs in building their capacity to provide fully accessible, culturally relevant, trauma-informed domestic violence advocacy services and to better serve survivors who were experiencing trauma-related mental health and substance use challenges and their children. Furthermore, the partners wanted to develop cross-disciplinary collaborations with behavioral health providers at the state and local level, in order to generate additional resources for survivors and their children, and they wanted to ensure that those resources were sensitive to both trauma and domestic violence.
This three-year effort included building organizational, community, and state-level capacity in each site as part of a multi-tiered process involving sharing knowledge; developing new skills and enhancing existing skills; and transforming organizational policies, procedures, and cultures.
This Multi-Site Initiative Report showcases the accomplishments of the sites, as well as challenges, lessons learned, and promising practices. The voices of domestic violence advocates at the local and state level, as well as advocacy-based clinicians and researchers, are threaded throughout the narratives. These accounts are intended to encourage and assist other states in developing their capacity to provide accessible, culturally relevant, and trauma-informed responses to domestic violence and other lifetime trauma so that survivors and their children can access the resources that are essential to their safety and well-being.
Multi-Site Initiative Report: Building Capacity to Support Survivors Who Experience Trauma-Related Mental Health and Substance Abuse Needs (September 2013)
How You Write Is as Important as What You Say: A Guide to Trauma-Informed Writing
This resource is intended to guide the reader in thinking about how we can embody in our writing the trauma-informed principles that we may be working to implement elsewhere in our work and in our lives. It is intended primarily for writers of resource materials, such as tipsheets, handouts, brochures, and other informational materials. It includes suggestions on trauma-informed, emotionally accessible, and non-objectifying language. In addition, it includes some tips on writing clearly and concisely, as well as on using accessible and plain language. At the end, there are a few tips on grammar and punctuation, addressing issues that come up frequently for writers of resource materials.
How You Write Is as Important as What You Say: A Guide to Trauma-Informed Writing
Creating Trauma-Informed Training Environments
Trauma-informed principles center on safety, choice, agency, connection, and collaboration. These are advocacy principles as well. As advocates, we recognize the importance to survivors of making decisions for themselves, of being acknowledged as the experts on their own experience, and of participating in relationships that are true partnerships. We strive to be trustworthy in offering our services, supports, and advocacy. These principles should also be reflected when we provide training to our colleagues and collaborative partners. This publication offers some tips on incorporating principles of a trauma-informed approach in our training environments themselves.
Creating Trauma-Informed Training Environments
