How do we get to trauma-informed practice? Retention and application of learning by practitioners trained using the core curriculum on childhood trauma.

Objective: Most mental health practitioners receive minimal trauma training in their degree curriculum and rely on supplemental training to build additional skills. Since 2016, the Core Curriculum on Childhood Trauma (CCCT) has been used for brief in-service training of more than 2,000 mental health practitioners. Prior evaluation showed statistically significant learning outcomes posttraining, yet little was known about retention of learning or impact on clinical practice. Method: We collected 100 mixed-method follow-up surveys from participants completing CCCT training between October 2016 and August 2019. Results: Statistically significant increases were seen between pretraining and follow-up self-report (6–24 months later) for four child trauma skills (effect sizes: 0.90–1.07). Qualitative data identified four key impacts on clinical practice: increased empathy, understanding of trauma complexity, systematic approach to case conceptualization, and catalyzing further trauma learning. Conclusions: Positive learning outcomes 6–24 months posttraining suggest that the CCCT is an effective tool for in-service training and that retained learning can translate into improved trauma-informed clinical practice.