Measuring Trauma- (and Violence-) Informed Care: A Scoping Review

Area of Science:

• Healthcare Practice and Policy
• Psychology and Social Sciences
• Public Health

Background:

• Trauma- (and violence-) informed care (T(V)IC) is increasingly adopted across healthcare settings.
• Measuring the implementation and impact of T(V)IC remains underexplored.
• Related concepts like vicarious trauma and implicit bias are also relevant to T(V)IC.

Purpose of the Study:

• To conduct a scoping review of available measures for T(V)IC.
• To identify and describe the nature and extent of existing T(V)IC measurement tools.
• To examine the coverage of T(V)IC concepts within these measures.

Main Methods:

• Systematic literature search from database inception to Summer 2020.
• Screening of 1074 retrieved articles by two independent reviewers.
• Full-text review of 228 articles to identify 13 measures meeting inclusion criteria.

Main Results:

• Thirteen T(V)IC measures were identified, with two predominant vicarious trauma measures.
• Measures primarily assess "knowledge" and "safety," with less focus on "collaboration/choice" and "strengths-based" concepts.
• Existing tools often focus on individual-level factors or organizational policies, with limited examination of structural inequities.

Conclusions:

• Current T(V)IC measures do not comprehensively cover the full spectrum of the approach.
• Developing or adapting measurement tools is necessary to capture the breadth of T(V)IC.
• Future measures should consider incorporating structural factors impacting care.