Teaching Medical Students and Residents to Practice Trauma-Informed Care in Inpatient Psychiatric Settings

Inpatient psychiatric units provide needed care for individuals experiencing acute mental health issues, but many individuals report negative experiences from hospitalization, and most have histories of trauma, increasing the risk of retraumatization in these settings. The promotion of trauma-informed care over the last two decades represents a step in the right direction, but specific training of medical students and residents on how to apply this to clinical practice in inpatient psychiatric settings is lacking. The authors conducted a narrative review to fill this gap in the literature.

A search of the databases PubMed, Ovid MEDLINE, PsycINFO, CINAHL, and Embase was conducted in December 2024 using relevant search terms. After reviewing titles, abstracts, full-length articles, and reference lists, 49 articles were identified and reviewed.

The included articles represented a wide range of countries, study approaches, and participant demographics. Based on the review of the data, the authors identified 25 concrete, practical strategies that medical students and residents can be educated on to apply trauma-informed care to their clinical practice in inpatient mental health settings.

From increasing sensitive inquiry of all patients about trauma, to engaging patients in collaborative discussion about treatments, to educating staff about the widespread impacts of trauma (including microaggressions) and how observed patient behaviors may be related to this, to seeking and advocating for training in the care of specific populations, the authors' findings can inform the education of medical students and residents on the use of trauma-informed care in inpatient mental health settings.