Hogg Foundation for Mental Health

Trauma-informed Care for People with Intellectual Disabilities and Behavioral Health Challenges

February 20, 2012 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.

	EVENT DETAILS Date: February 20, 2012 Time: 9:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m. Location: 3001 Lake Austin Blvd. Fourth Floor Austin, TX 78703 Cost: Free! REGISTER NOW!

At this free public forum hosted by the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, Karyn Harvey, Ph.D., will provide an overview of trauma-informed care and offer strategies for using trauma-informed practices for people with intellectual disabilities and behavioral health challenges.

The forum is free and open to the public, but space is limited and advance registration is required. Continuing education units are offered at no charge for social workers, marriage and family therapists and professional counselors.

Trauma-informed care is widely recognized and valued in child welfare, juvenile justice, criminal justice and family violence systems of support. Trauma-informed care means shifting the culture of care from asking “what’s wrong with you?” to “what happened to you?” Only by understanding that trauma can be the root cause of behavior challenges can service providers help to heal past pain and provide support that avoids re-traumatization.

Rarely do we hear discussion about adopting trauma-informed practices in programs and service systems supporting people with intellectual disabilities. Yet people with intellectual disabilities are at a much higher risk of being abused or neglected than the general population. This abuse often leads to unrecognized trauma that can significantly impact behavior.

People supporting individuals with intellectual disabilities and behavioral challenges can benefit by understanding how past and recurring trauma can affect their behavior. Knowing a person’s history of trauma provides opportunities to avoid triggers that exacerbate challenging behaviors. Identifying past trauma and triggers and applying strategies to prevent re-traumatization may require new skills, extra effort and a strong desire to improve quality of support.

About the Speaker

Karyn has worked as a clinician with adults with intellectual disabilities for over 23 years. She has a master’s degree in clinical psychology and a doctor’s degree in applied developmental psychology from the University of Maryland. She is currently the assistant executive director of quality supports for the Arc of Baltimore. In addition, she is an adjunct professor at the University of Baltimore’s graduate psychology program, where she teaches a graduate class in the psychology of trauma.

Contact: Program Officer Colleen Horton at colleen.horton@austin.utexas.edu or (512) 471-2988