Background
Individual, interpersonal and collective trauma is a highly prevalent and costly public health problem [
1]. The WHO World Mental Health Survey identified that 70% of participants had experienced lifetime traumas, including physical violence, intimate partner sexual violence, and trauma related to war [
2]. People experiencing socio-economic disadvantage, women, minoritized ethnic groups, and the LGBTQ + community are disproportionally affected by violence and trauma [
3,
4]. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are stressful or traumatic events that occur during childhood or adolescence [
5]. In England, a household survey found that nearly half of adults had experienced at least one ACE, including childhood sexual, physical or verbal abuse, as well as household domestic violence and abuse (DVA) [
6]. DVA is considered to be a chronic and cumulative cause of complex trauma [
7]. Up to 29% women and 13% men have experienced DVA in their lifetime, at a cost of £14 billion a year to the UK economy [
7‐
9].
Cumulative trauma across the lifespan is associated with multiple health consequences [
10]. The links between cumulative adversity from ACEs, DVA and other traumatic experiences are explained within the ecobiodevelopmental framework and the concept of toxic stress [
11]. In a systematic review and meta-analysis of 37 observational studies of health behaviours and adult disease, patients with four or more ACEs were at higher risk of a range of poorer health outcomes including cardiovascular disease and mental ill health, versus those with no ACEs history [
12]. Individuals and families who have experienced violence and trauma seek support from healthcare and other services for the physical, psychological and socioeconomic consequences of trauma [
1,
13]. In the household survey in England and Wales, adults who had experienced four ACEs were twice as likely to attend their general practice repeatedly, compared with those with no ACEs history, and incidence of health service use rose as the ACEs experiences increased [
14]. In a systematic review 47% of patients in mental health services had experienced physical abuse and 37% had experienced sexual abuse [
15].
If the high prevalence and negative impacts of trauma are not recognised and addressed in healthcare services, there may be negative consequences for patients and healthcare professionals. Patients may not disclose trauma or recognise the impact of trauma on their health [
16]. Patients may also be at risk of re-triggering and re-traumatization, for example by the removal of choice regarding treatment, judgemental responses following a disclosure of abuse, seclusion and restraint [
17‐
19]. Re-traumatization within health services can affect both patients and members of staff, with the latter experiencing vicarious trauma [
20]. The resulting chronic stress may impact on staff members’ ability to empathise and support others [
21]. Many healthcare staff themselves have lived experience of trauma. A recent systematic review of healthcare professionals’ own experience of DVA, reported a pooled lifetime prevalence of 31.3% (95% CI [24.7%, 38.7%] [
22].
Over last 20 years, several frameworks for a trauma-informed (TI) approach at the health systems level have been developed [
13,
17,
23‐
28]. These frameworks aim to prevent re-traumatization in healthcare services and mitigate the high prevalence and negative effects of violence and trauma on patients and healthcare professionals. A TI approach (synonyms TI care, TI service system) starts from the assumption that every patient and healthcare professional could potentially have been affected by trauma [
13]. By realising and recognising these experiences and their impacts, we can respond by providing services in a trauma-informed way to improve healthcare experience and outcomes for both patients and staff. The process of becoming a TI system is guided by key principles of safety, trust, peer support, collaboration, empowerment and cultural sensitivity [
13]. The most cited frameworks for a system-level TI approach are those by Harris and Fallot [
29], and the US Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) [
13]. These frameworks highlight that it is necessary to, firstly, change organizational culture and environments (organizational domain) and then change clinical practices (clinical domain) by incorporating the four TI assumptions and six TI principles throughout the ten implementation domains within a health system [
13]
. Other authors proposed similar constructs for the framework of TI approach, often using slightly differing terminology [
29,
30]. The authors consistently highlighted that the framework of TI approach is not a protocol but rather high-level guidance applicable to any human service system and should be tailored to the organizational and wider contexts. The process of becoming a TI system is described as a transformation journey rather than a one-off activity.
Despite a 20-year history of the TI approach framework, several reviews have found limited evidence for their effectiveness in health systems, with most studies conducted in North America and only one qualitative study in the UK [
31‐
33]. Despite little evidence of acceptability, effectiveness, and cost effectiveness in the UK context, policies and guidelines at national, regional and organisational levels recommend implementing TI approaches in healthcare organisations and systems. It is important to understand how TI approaches are being introduced into policy documents, and how these policies are being interpreted and applied within UK healthcare. This study aims to understand the UK-specific context for implementing a TI approach in healthcare by exploring:
1.
How are TI approaches represented in UK health policies?
2.
How are TI approaches understood by policy makers and healthcare professionals?
3.
How are TI approaches implemented in the UK?
This study of UK policy and practice will help us understand what TI approaches mean for policy makers and professionals to inform future UK-specific policy and TI approaches in healthcare.
Methods
To answer our research questions, and consider perspectives from different standpoints, we conducted a multi-method qualitative study comprised of a document analysis of UK health policies followed by semi-structured interviews with key informants. Document analysis explored how TI approaches are represented in UK health policy while interviews explored professional views on how they are understood and implemented. We used the Ready Extract Analyse Distil (READ) approach [
34], to guide the review of health policies and the framework method [
35], to analyse data. The framework method is suitable for applied health research conducted by multi-disciplinary teams with varied experiences of qualitative analysis.
Data collection
Data collection occurred between October 2020 and June 2021, with researchers and interviewees based in remote settings due to social distancing restrictions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sample size was informed by the concept of information power [
36], and restricted by the available funding and a tight timeline.
Document search
We defined policy as ‘a statement of the government’s position, intent or action’ [
37], and considered this definition at the level of a nation, local authority or organization. Two researchers (EE, NVL) identified key policy and related contextual documents, which provided background information on TI approaches. We identified documents through: (i) searches for peer reviewed and grey literature in our earlier systematic review on TI primary care and community mental healthcare [
31], (ii) snowballing of references from included documents, (iii) signposting by interview participants and experts in the field of TI care. Researchers retrieved documents meeting the inclusion criteria: adult healthcare, UK-focus and discussion of TI approaches. We excluded documents on child healthcare, trauma-specific interventions and non-UK focus.
Qualitative interviews
We conducted virtual semi-structured interviews with professionals at decision making levels who have direct experience of developing and implementing TI approaches in the UK healthcare system. We agreed to recruit up to 10 professionals from national and local governments and healthcare organisations. Researchers sent an expression of interest letter via email and Twitter to: (i) individuals and professional networks of policy makers, (ii) authors of included policy documents, (iii) individuals recommended by interview participants. Interested individuals contacted study researchers who checked their eligibility, sent participant information leaflets, answered questions, and arranged interviews with those eligible and willing to proceed. Interviews were conducted over the Zoom video call platform. Researchers obtained verbal informed consent, asked demographic questions, and followed a flexible topic guide to ensure primary issues were covered during all interviews but allowing participants to introduce unanticipated issues. The topic guide explored participant experiences of developing and implementing TI approaches and their views on how TI approaches have come to be represented in policy and implementation (Additional file
1). The interviews were audio-recorded with consent, professionally transcribed verbatim, and anonymised.
Analysis
Data analysis started alongside data collection, to help refine and guide further data collection [
35]. We followed the four-step READ approach to document review in health policy research: 1) ‘Ready your materials’ which involves agreeing the type and quantity of documents to analyse, 2) ‘Extract data’ whereby key document information such as basic data and concepts are organized, 3)’Analyse data’ when data is interpreted and findings are developed, 4) ‘Distil your findings’ which involves assessing whether there is sufficient data to answer the research question and findings are refined into a narrative [
34].
In step one, two researchers (EE, NVL) agreed to use purposive sampling to gather 24 documents representing a broad range of document categories including primary legislation, parliamentary documents, NHS and Public Health England strategy and planning documents, service-user perspectives, evaluation reports, and guidance on ‘how to do’ TI approach [
38]. EE ordered included documents chronologically. In step two, EE read and re-read all included documents and used a customized Excel form to extract data on document title, authors, year, source, objectives, target audience, focus, key messages, referenced evidence, policies/guidelines, and recommendations. During data extraction, researchers made notes about how each document answered the following questions: What is TI care? TI care for whom? Why TI care? EE and NVL met regularly to discuss preliminary ideas for analysis.
In step three, we imported all included documents and interview transcripts into NVivo R project and applied the framework method [
35]. To address variability in definitions and terminology regarding TI approaches, we included key concepts from the well-known SAMHSA system-level framework [
13], as a basis for our coding frame, for example the six TI principles. First, all researchers read four documents and two interview transcripts and independently manually coded text relevant to our research questions using a combination of inductive and deductive coding [
39]. Deductive coding helped to identify concepts related to TI care, even if the document itself did not specifically use the “trauma-informed” term. The researchers then met to compare initial thematic codes and agree on a ‘working analytical framework’ which was imported into NVivo and applied to the documents and interviews transcripts. We refined the framework by adding and merging thematic codes identified subsequently, ran matrix coding queries by data sub-sets (documents, interviews), and combined codes into final analytical themes that answered our research questions. During the analysis stage, researchers met bi-weekly to finalise the dataset, develop and refine coding frame and themes. We wrote reflective diaries and analytical notes and discussed how our clinical backgrounds in general practice and psychiatry, and varied experiences of qualitative research, could have influenced the analysis.
In step four, we stopped document review when we reached the pre-specified number of documents and discussed common findings. First, we illustrated how TI approaches have developed in the UK over time by creating an integrated timeline with document publication dates, the years when interview participants began working in this area, and broader contextual factors from national news and related media. Then we integrated findings from the analysis of documents and interviews through three iterative cycles of developing final analytical themes cutting across documents and interviews. Researchers produced written accounts of the themes, and tables with illustrative quotes that explained how TI approaches have been represented in policy documents, understood, and implemented in the UK.
Discussion
Our document analysis of health policies and interviews with professionals found differing representation, understanding, and implementation of TI approaches in the UK with wide variations between geographical areas, services, and individual professionals. Cross-sectoral endorsement of TI approaches in policies was not supported by high-level legislation or funding, and a UK-specific evidence base. Despite divergent and conflicting interpretations of TI approaches, the common understanding was that it differs from other practices by integrating TI principles at the organisational level and it should be tailored to the organization and wider contexts. It can also address NHS problems from integrated care to post-COVID recovery. We found more centralized implementation of TI approaches in Scotland and Wales versus piecemeal implementation in England. The implementation of TI approaches in England was driven from the bottom-up by passionate dedicated leaders at the level of organization or local authority, who called for more coordinated working supported by the UK government and NHS leaders. We identified factors that facilitated or hindered implementation of TI approaches at the level of organization (leadership, service user involvement, organizational culture, resource allocation, competing priorities) and wider context (government support, funding). The evidence-policy gap in TI care implementation can be explained by limited funding and evaluation capacity. Professionals had differing views on the future of TI approaches, however all agreed that without political backing at the government level, policy endorsement will not translate into meaningful implementation.
Our finding of a marked difference in the landscape of TI approaches in healthcare systems between the devolved nations, with evidence of a unified national strategy emerging in Scotland and Wales and notably absent in England could have several explanations. These include smaller territories, populations, and governments in devolved nations, with clear buy-in from government-level leadership in Scotland. Our analysis highlighted the initiatives of local decision-makers in England who have developed and implemented TI approaches in their own organizations and local authorities. The absence of a national strategy in England contributed to the piecemeal implementation, with some regions leading the way, and others silent. As local TI leads have been left to ‘find their own way’, they may not always have been aware of similar initiatives in other organizations and regions. A proposed solution was bottom-up initiatives aiming to bring the local TI leads together to share resources and good practice. This finding indicates the need for a leader on TI approaches within or linked to the UK government who can support and strengthen the bottom-up initiatives.
Another important finding is confirmation of the evidence-policy gap, with proposed reasons emerging in the analysis. Interview participants explained an absence of UK evidence on the effectiveness of TI approaches by a need for more interest from commissioners and funders, as well as a lack of physical and methodological capacity to evaluate system-level TI approaches. The former can be resolved through funding calls and comprehensive, transparent evaluation. The latter can be addressed by funding evaluations and raising awareness regarding available methodologies and tools for evaluating TI system change interventions [
32,
33].
Our finding of differing understanding of TI-approaches is in line with prior literature [
63]. We found that some participants interpreted standalone TI practices (e.g., ACEs enquiry, one-off training about TI care) as a TI approach. Such interpretations are not supported by evidence. Authors of the ACEs study explained that the ACEs score is not a diagnostic tool, therefore care should be taken if used as part of community-wide screening, with rigorous evaluation of its use [
64]. Recent reviews also found limited evidence on outcomes from routine enquiry, recommending further research [
65,
66]. Several systematic reviews demonstrated that standalone awareness raising did not result in change in behaviour and practices among healthcare professionals [
67,
68].
These misunderstandings can be explained by the conceptual mutability of a TI approach framework, lack of awareness about existing frameworks, and a need for coordinated working led by experts in TI approaches. The evidence of emerging working groups and UK-wide professional networks on TI care is promising. However, these initiatives require adequate funding and coordination to sustain momentum and develop further. These professional networks can become the platform for education about evidence-based TI approaches contributing to increasing value and reducing waste in research and implementation in this field.
This study is methodologically robust with perspectives drawn from UK policy documents and professionals, who have direct experience of developing and implementing TI approaches. Data analysis occurred alongside data collection, to help refine and guide further data collection. The limitations include no professional informants from devolved nations and no participants at the level of UK government. Due to time and funding restrictions, we could only recruit 11 professionals and did not interview patients including those with lived experience of trauma. Our small sample size could have resulted in underrepresentation of views of some stakeholders. Future research should recruit informants from these groups to draw a complete picture of the landscape of TI approaches in the UK.
Conclusions
Although health policies endorse implementation of TI approaches in the UK, they do not provide specific legislation, strategy or funding and are not supported by evidence of effectiveness. Understanding and implementation of TI approaches varies between regions, organizations, and individual professionals; however, all agree that if implemented at the system level and contextually tailored, TI approaches can mitigate varied problems withing NHS. The implementation of TI approaches in the UK is driven by local experts in TI care. A coordinated, more centralized strategy and enhanced provisioning for TI healthcare, including increased funding for evaluation and education through TI professional networks, can contribute towards evidence-informed policies and implementation of TI approaches in the UK.
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