Treating the symptoms of trauma among residential out-of-home care workers

RESEARCH PROFILE

Dr Heather Morris

Treating the symptoms of trauma among residential out-of-home care workers

Dr Heather Morris is a researcher in the Health and Social Care Unit. Dr Morris’ recent research has focussed on the treatment for trauma caused in the workplace, thanks to a partnership with MacKillop Family Services (MacKillop), in collaboration with the EMDR Academy and Cardiff University.

Staff who work with traumatised children and young people in out-of-home care (OOHC) can experience violence and harm. As a provider of OOHC, MacKillop offers Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) to staff who experience symptoms of trauma such as hypervigilance or sleep disturbance. Dr Morris and team’s systematic review into the effectiveness of EMDR for those who work in dynamic environments (focusing on first responders) found that EMDR is an effective, acceptable and feasible treatment.

The retrospective study into the effectiveness of EMDR for residential carers using online or in-person methods, found both methods achieved significant reductions in trauma symptoms. A final study into the impact on the workforce absences, retention and perceptions amongst staff at MacKillop is currently being finalised.

For more information: heather.morris@monash.edu