Trauma‐informed care (TIC) best practices for improving patient care in the emergency department

Trauma‐informed care (TIC) best practices for improving patient care in the emergency department

Trauma, Trauma-informed care, Safety, Quality improvement, Harm reduction, Quality of care,
Psychological first aid

A patient’s current or previous experience of trauma may have an impact on their health and affect their ability to
engage in health care. Every year, millions of patients who have experienced physically or emotionally traumatic
experiences present to emergency departments (ED) for care. Often, the experience of being in the ED itself can
exacerbate patient distress and invoke physiological dysregulation. The physiological reactions that lead to fight,
flight, or freeze responses can make providing care to these patients complex and can even lead to harmful encoun‐
ters for providers. There is a need to improve the care provided to the vast number of patients in the ED and create
a safer environment for patients and healthcare workers. One solution to this complex challenge is understanding
and integrating trauma-informed care (TIC) into emergency services. The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health
Service Administration’s (SAMHSA) six guiding principles of TIC offer a universal precaution framework that ensures
quality care for all patients, providers, and staff in EDs. While there is growing evidence that TIC quantitatively and
qualitatively improves ED care, there is a lack of practical, emergency medicine-specific guidance on how to best
operationalize TIC. In this article, using a case example, we outline how emergency medicine providers can integrate
TIC into their practice.

Henry Ashworth1*, Annie Lewis‐O’Connor2

, Samara Grossman3

, Taylor Brown4

, Sadie Elisseou5 and

Hanni Stoklosa5,6

https://doi.org/10.1186/s12245-023-00509-w

2023

Peri Irawan

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