Trauma-informed approach: An update of the literature

The vision for mental health and addiction services in Aotearoa New Zealand in He Ara Oranga (2018) is that the care people experience in services is trauma-informed. Oranga Hinengaro – Service and System Framework (2023) identifies being trauma-informed as one of the five principles for delivering mental health and addiction services.

Supporting this vision is the Let’s get real framework, which describes the values, attitudes, and skills needed to deliver effective services when working with people who experience mental health challenges and problematic substance use.

A previous literature scan by Te Pou provided a comprehensive review of what a trauma-informed approach is and some evidence on implementation (Donaldson, 2018). This current review is a fresh look at the literature to understand what such an approach is in 2024 and to inform the development of Let’s get real resources in support of workforce development and trauma-informed implementation.

This review aims to build on the evidence from previous literature on trauma-informed approaches with current evidence, with the objective of informing workforce development. The key questions to be answered:

1. What is a trauma-informed approach, particularly in the Aotearoa New Zealand context?
2. What factors support the implementation of a trauma-informed approach into practice?