Amy Hardy1,2, Sarah Swan2, Jonathan Bradley2, Claire Thompson2, Suzanne Jolley1,2; 1Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, 2South London & Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust
Background: The United Kingdom’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence guidelines for psychosis and schizophrenia recommend that trauma and PTSD should be routinely assessed in Early Intervention for Psychosis services and, when indicated, therapies for posttraumatic stress disorder and other reactions to trauma provided (NICE, 2014). This is based on research indicating higher rates of trauma and posttraumatic stress reactions in this clinical group compared to the general population, and emerging evidence of the effectiveness of trauma-focused talking treatments (de Bont et al, 2015; van den Berg et al, 2015). However, effective implementation of the guidance is dependent on addressing barriers and opportunities from a range of stakeholder perspectives, multidisciplinary staff training and supervision, and an audit cycle to evaluate trauma-informed practice. Methods: The ‘Talking Trauma’ audit aims to address these needs, using interviews and surveys with service users and staff, together with case note review, and is being conducted across the psychosis services of a National Health Service Trust in inner city London. Results: A summary of the audit findings to date will be provided, followed by plans for further service development. Discussion: Implementation in early intervention in psychosis services is challenging but feasible. Attention needs to be directed towards establishing and maintaining a culture of trauma-informed care, to support effective case management and access to trauma-focused therapy.
