By Sandra Parker, Institute for Human Services

In the last few weeks, we've received a variety of questions from supervisors about child welfare and secondary trauma:

1. How do I talk with my workers about trauma?
2. What is the difference between secondary and vicarious trauma, compassion fatigue, burn-out, and post-traumatic stress?
3. Could I be held liable if I ask my staff about personal issues, or what if I believe one of my staff is experiencing secondary trauma but I don't talk with them about it?

Let's start with the first two questions. In order to talk about trauma with your staff, it's important you understand what trauma is and be familiar with the various terms associated with trauma. In the 2012 annual conference sponsored by the University of Minnesota, Beyond Burnout: Secondary Trauma and the Child Welfare Workforce, keynote speaker Brian Bride, PhD, provided an excellent overview of this very topic. Click this link for his presentation. Once you have a satisfactory understanding of how trauma can be experienced by child welfare professionals, begin to educate your staff as a group. Introduce the topic at a unit meeting. Ask about their familiarity with trauma. If members of the unit have a trusting and comfortable relationship with one another, you can also ask if anyone has ever experienced job-related trauma. It's quite possible some of your staff will identify with this and easily acknowledge the difficulty of the work and the toll it can take. They may also want to share their own experiences. If so, your role is to listen and to help them feel safe in sharing. Don't be surprised though, if other staff members try to minimize the idea of work-related trauma. They may be the ones who say to their peers: "This is just a part of the job. Get a grip.", or "Suck it up, man; what you're saying just goes with the territory." At this point it's important to stress that everyone has a right to their opinion and feelings, but that it's important to respect one another, too. Acknowledge how you can see both sides of the issue, but that it's your belief (supported by professional literature) that child welfare workers can and do experience trauma associated with their work. You might even share a couple of examples (For an example, you can use the two stories in the newsletter). Sometimes it's easier for workers to recognize trauma as it affects their clients. For instance, in the article I Remember the Call, you could ask your staff: How do you think the parents of these children must've felt? Would they have been traumatized? What about the siblings? Who else might have had a reaction to these two situations? Then point out the indicators of trauma experienced by the child welfare professionals involved in these two cases. It might even help to share why cases such as these would even be difficult for you as the supervisor.

Help staff realize too, single events are not the only cause of trauma for child welfare professionals. Very often it's an accumulation of stressful situations over time that result in vicarious trauma. Staff may complain of feeling "burned out" or, on the other hand, may not even be aware there's a problem. As a supervisor however, you might notice gradual changes in staff's functioning and morale, including a significant decrease in their physical and emotional energy. There may even come a point when their work with children and families is at risk of being seriously compromised. You have an obligation then to step in and address the concerns with your staff. Perhaps you can assist in identifying whether s/he has been experiencing unusual symptoms such as sleep disturbances, lethargy, irritability or anger, or a disinterest in the job. Doing so in a non-threatening, caring, and supportive manner can go a long way in helping staff take whatever steps are necessary to take care of him/herself. You can also offer added reassurance that what s/he is experiencing is not uncommon among child welfare workers. You can inform him/her about services the agency can provide and/or whatever community resources might be of help. An offer of assistance to connect the worker to services would provide an extra measure of support.

By Darlene Baad and Dawn Boudrie, Summit County Children Services

Many of us know far too well, that the daily exposure to trauma and the suffering of others has an ever changing effect on our lives.  According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network "studies show that up to 50% of child welfare workers are at high risk of secondary traumatic stress or related conditions of PTSD and Vicarious Trauma". The stresses related to these traumatic experiences are often manifested in our lives physically, cognitively, emotionally, and behaviorally.  Direct line Child Welfare workers have often exhibited symptoms such as; insomnia, decreased appetite, increased irritability, and chronic fatigue. Even though the workers have not endured this suffering personally, these symptoms or behaviors are often associated to their inability to fully process the secondary trauma that has occurred. When secondary trauma is not identified and addressed, workers undergo an emotional depletion to workplace activities that once brought them satisfaction, inclusive of poor work performance and attendance issues.

As Child Welfare Supervisors, the significance of this impact to our workers as well as the children and families we serve has much greater implications on our ability to provide both the direction and support that caseworkers depend on daily. Both secondary and vicarious trauma directly impacts job satisfaction, job retention, and inevitably the overall staff morale. In a study by Michigan State University School of Social Work, "high turnover rates and staffing shortages leave remaining staff with insufficient time to establish relationships with children and families and make the necessary decisions to ensure safe and stable permanent placements. Nationally, staff turnover rates in the field of Children and Family Services range from 30-40% each year."  Poor employee retention leaves agencies with exorbitant costs of recruiting, hiring and training new staff when administrators are already managing in an overburdened system. Supervisors are also faced with a more encompassing challenge of providing adequate support to their workers, ensuring the cases are being addressed properly while processing their own internal responses to vicarious trauma.

As Child Welfare Professionals, the lens in which we view the world has been significantly skewed by our experiences in this work. Administration will need effective means to address secondary and vicarious trauma through preventative measures that ensure organizations can continue to form a high functioning and cohesive working environment.The adverse effects of secondary and vicarious trauma can potentially threaten the fundamental response to assessing child safety and well being. It not only becomes a concern of effective service delivery with families, but also an issue of healthy communication between caseworkers and supervisors. It is often this pertinent and critical exchange of information that shapes the foundation of agency and policy practice. As a result, administrators are challenged to provide preventative services to staff. Administrators have the opportunity to allocate resources to staff to help mitigate the impact of secondary and vicarious trauma. 

Congratulations to the East Central Ohio Regional Training Center (ECORTC) and North Central Ohio Regional Training Center (NCORTC) for planning and hosting two FANTASTIC Leadership and Supervisor Conferences this past March. Both conferences offered many great workshops. Supervisors learned together, shared tools and resources, and networked with fellow supervisors. 

Check it out! At the 2013 PCSAO Conference, supervisors will be invited to learn and network through a specialized track of GAPs and interactive sessions. The first day of the conference will be especially for supervisors! The conference will be October 22-24, 2013 at the Doubletree by Hilton in Columbus/Worthington, Ohio. More information to come soon! 

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Join the Conversation: Attend a two-hour distance learning about critial incident stress management.

Best Practice in Child Welfare Supervision: Critical Incident Stress Management Model

The second specific distance learning in the OCWTP's supervisor distance learning series is on the critical incident stress management model.  This distance learning activity will be facilitated by an expert on this model.  Supervisors will be able to access the distance learning from their desk and join a facilitated dialogue with supervisors from around the state.

Thank you to all who attended our first Supervisor Distance Learning, Best Practice in Child Welare Supervision: Vicarious Truama!  

Ask a Supervisor

This segment is devoted to helping supervisors meet the challenges of the job.  The questions will come from you, child welfare supervisors. If you have a challenge you'd like us to address, email us at

Q: I would like to start going out jointly occasionally with my workers to observe them in the field in order to better evaluate their skills/abilities, provide coaching, and also to assist me in learning more about worker's styles, strengths, deficits, etc. I am interested in any tools (observations templates, etc.) that other supervisors use when observing their caseworkers in the field. Thank you!

Kelly Charland, MSW, LSW

Social Services Supervisor

• "The one thing I always have to remember when going out with caseworkers is to make sure I keep quiet and let the worker work with the family.  This is hard as the client often sees the supervisor as the only one that can answer the question. I try not to take over the conversation so that way I can see how parents are treated.  If there is a question the caseworker cannot answer I will answer the question." - Child Welfare Supervisor
• One supervisor uses a worries/wells/opportunities document which guides the observation and conversation. As a note, opportunities may also be next steps either for the person who is doing the field observation or for the person who was being observed. 
• One PCSA supervisor stated she allowed new workers to observe her in the field doing best practice. They would then process after the event. The supervisor would then observe the worker in the field and process after the event.
• A screening supervisor reported she will listen to a recorded call and do her own documentation then compare it to what is in SACWIS. The supervisor then will have a conversation with the worker about items in the referral.
• Here is a tool used by New Jersey: New Jersey's Observation Tool. Please adapt it to best meet your county or unit's needs.
• July 2012, The Forum, Caution-- Supervisors are often promoted because they were good caseworkers, so it is easy for them to very naturally interject during home visits, court hearings, or other field observations and "take over" the experience. Unfortunately, this does not allow workers an opportunity to demonstrate what they know, nor does it allow supervisors to assess their workers' knowledge and/or skill. Because worker style differs, supervisors must allow the event to occur as the worker would have it progress and discuss the event afterward noting strengths and areas of growth.
• This is an assessment tool of your own supervisory coaching skills, http://www.practicenotes.org/13n2/coach.htm. This will help you provide the coaching your workers need to develop their skills.

Q: I began supervising three years ago.  Since that time I have experienced several staffing changes in my unit. Recently, I have begun to question my effectiveness in this role. Nervously, I asked some of my staff how they felt about my leadership. I was saddened to hear they felt I was not understanding of the stressful situations they experience on a day to day basis. What can I do to demonstrate that I do care for them as people and not just as my employees? What can my agency do to assist me in these efforts? 

Dear Supervisor:

Here are a few suggestions. You and your organization can start by developing a plan for reducing the impact of secondary and vicarious trauma by considering the following:

1. Have regular check-ins for debriefing if you suspect your staff has experienced a stressful incident. Acknowledge the experience and be prepared to offer support.
2. Encourage supervisors to have quick morning meetings with their staff to discuss their plans for the day.
3. Assign work to your staff, acknowledge the difficulty in the task, process possible areas of concern, develop concise plans for the work.
4. Encourage your unit members to take care of each other.
5. Make time for your staff to discuss other areas of personal and professional development.
6. Let your staff know that you care not only about the work but about them as individuals. 
7. Support the development of your staff's capacity in the area of secondary and vicarious trauma through resources, education and training.
8. Encourage and create outside opportunities for staff to engage in wellness-related activities.
9. Discuss the above with your administrators and encourage more attention be given to addressing the need of those experiencing secondary and vicarious trauma through the development of policies and procedures geared toward this sensitive issue.