Secondary Traumatic Stress–Informed Policies and Procedures

Organizational policies and procedures include those that are specifically designed to mitigate and support workers in addressing secondary traumatic stress (STS). In addition, it is important that when existing and new policies and procedures are updated or developed that they be considered through an STS lens. Each policy and procedure should be carefully considered to think about the impacts it might have on staff and should be created or modified in a way that will be supportive of staffs’ well-being. Policies related to STS should relate to the entire workforce, not just those working directly with clients. Creating agency policies on STS communicates to the entire staff that STS is a priority. Having STS-informed and STS-specific policies also creates a more STS-informed culture and ensures sustainability to buffer against turnover in leadership.