Trauma-Informed care is a framework for providing services to people with the understanding that at least two-thirds of the adult population have experienced a traumatic event at least once in their lives. The purpose of the framework is to provide services without re-traumatizing the person receiving the services.
I strive to implement the six principles of trauma-informed care into every single client interaction.
- Safety – Clients deserve to feel safe, physically and emotionally. This means flexibility in regards to physical space and mindfulness in how I verbally and non-verbally communicate. It means asking if there is something different I can do or provide.
- Choice – Clients, whether actual or potential, deserve as much choice as I can provide. I feel that it is my duty to bring to light as many solutions and pathways to those solution as I can think of.
- Collaboration – Clients have the right to work collaboratively with me in achieving their goals. When the task is complete, the client should feel a sense of ownership in the result.
- Trustworthiness – Clients have the right to expect good interpersonal boundaries with me. They should expect respectful and professional behavior. They should expect transparency on cost, time, and to know what goal requirements they are responsible for. They should expect honesty from me regarding any issues, roadblocks, or inexperience I may have (or that I can predict running into) in achieving their goals.
- Empowerment – Clients have the right to their issues being validated, regardless of whether they are issues that I can ultimately help with.
- Cultural, Historical and Gender Issues – Clients have the right to a lawyer who strives to be culturally competent and sensitive to the fact that trauma disproportionally affects historically marginalized populations.
By implementing these principles, my hope is that my practice will provide surety for my clients, not only as to their legal needs, but that they are seen, heard, respected and cared for as human beings. The legal system should be used to knock down barriers of inequity, not strengthen them.
