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accessHealthNews.net
December 2021
Volume 8 | Issue No. 52
"Listen to your gut. If something seems off, pay attention to
that. Being patient and kind goes such a long way with patients
who have experienced a lot of trauma and unfortunately a lot
of unkindness from health care professionals."
This article was originally published in July 2021.
"
Human Trafficking," a recent webinar series
put on by the Missouri Nurses Association,
highlighted the delicate and necessary role
health care providers play in eradicating
human trafficking. The series spanned four
sessions covering an introduction to human
trafficking for health care providers, case
studies, screening examples and trauma
responses, and investigations. Intervening
human trafficking cases requires an
understanding of what trafficking is, the effects
of trauma, and the role providers play in
providing support. Too often, failing to provide
a safe environment or ask the right questions
leads to delayed or missed intervention
opportunities.
The series began with an introduction by
Alison Phillips, director of the Missouri Attorney
General's Office Anti-Human Trafficking
Task Force. Citing multiple studies, Phillips
uncovered the alarming percentage of human
trafficking cases undetected by health care
providers. 88% of trafficking victims have had
contact with a healthcare provider while being
trafficked. 97% of victims who were seen by
health care workers were never offered any
help or resources.
"You as a health care worker are in a unique
key position to identify and intervene on
behalf of victims," Phillips said. According to
Phillips, Children's Mercy Hospital in Kansas
City identified 62 victims in 2019 and 58 in 2020.
"That's about one child a week for a year in
one hospital in one city. I think if all hospitals
had the same type of training and education,
we could be helping a lot more people."
The human trafficking training models
presented in the webinar and used by
Children's Mercy KC and St. Luke's Health
System focus on trauma-informed, patient-
centered approaches to care. Human
trafficking can lead to chronic trauma,
impacting a victim's physical, mental,
emotional, and behavioral health. Victims
may not self-identify as a victim or realize
they've been exploited, may not remember
what happened to them, and/or may not trust
health care providers. For these reasons, it's
necessary to approach potential trauma or
trafficking with sensitivity and allow the patient
to guide their care.
LOOKING AT THE BIG PICTURE
Victims of human trafficking usually are not
seeking help explicitly for their situation;
often, victims come in for other unrelated
emergencies.
