The organizational trauma-informed practices tool (O-TIPs): Development and preliminary validation.

The goal of the study was to develop and validate a simple, short, easy to self-administer, and cost-effective tool to assess organizational trauma-informed practices (O-TIPs), by building on existing tools. The tool was developed through a series of steps involving detailed examination, selection, and modification of existing trauma-informed (TI) frameworks and tools, which resulted in a 31-item questionnaire with three domains and eight subscales. The O-TIPs was evaluated for known-group construct validity to determine the degree to which it could discriminate between groups of organizations that were higher and lower on the extent to which they were implementing TIPs, by administering it online to staff at seven federally qualified health centers at two-time points. The domains, subscales, and the overall measure showed high internal consistency and discriminated significantly between known groups of centers at baseline and follow-up. In addition, the tool captured change over time in the extent to which the organizations were implementing TIPs. These findings provide preliminary support for the future use of the O-TIPs tool by service-delivery organizations.

Opportunities for psychologists to enact community change through adverse childhood experiences, trauma, and resilience networks.

A growing body of evidence on the inequitable distribution of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs; e.g., Merrick et al., 2018) and their impact throughout the life-course (e.g., Metzler et al., 2017) has highlighted the need to focus on their underlying causes (Ellis & Dietz, 2017). This increasing recognition of ACEs as a preventable public health problem (Bellis et al., 2019) with roots in the community environment has spurred collective responses (e.g., Srivastav et al., 2020), including the emergence of multisector, community-based networks organized to address ACEs and trauma and foster resilience, or "ATR networks" (Jones et al., 2017). ATR networks provide a platform for psychologists to contribute their theoretical, clinical, and research skills to community-level ACEs prevention and mitigation efforts collectively designed by a diverse group comprising professionals from a range of disciplines, advocates, grass-roots leaders, and community residents. Using evidence from an evaluation of Mobilizing Action for Resilient Communities, a recent multisite initiative of 14 ATR networks, this article describes the structure, operation, and accomplishments of these networks to make a case for the ways in which psychologists, working with other professionals and grassroots leaders, can contribute to these efforts. Findings highlight how sectors in which psychologists typically work, play pivotal roles in ATR networks, the ways in which network members in these sectors both influence and are influenced by the networks, and the types of outcomes achieved by the networks within these sectors. Suggestions are offered for the roles psychologists can play to enhance network efforts. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2021 APA, all rights reserved).

The Interplay Between Housing Stability and Child Separation: Implications for Practice and Policy.

Greater understanding of how residential stability affects child separation and reunification among homeless families can guide both child welfare and homeless policy and practice. This article draws upon two longitudinal studies examining services and housing for homeless families and their relationship to family and housing stability. Both studies were conducted in the same state at roughly the same time with similar instruments. The first study, examining families' experiences and outcomes following entry into the homeless service system in three counties in Washington State, found that at 18 months following shelter entry, families that are intact with their children were significantly more likely to be housed in their own housing (46%) than families that were separated from one or more of their children (31%). The second study, a quasiexperimental evaluation of a supportive housing program for homeless families with multiple housing barriers, found that the rates of reunification for Child Protective Services (CPS)-involved families receiving supportive housing was comparable to that for families entering public housing without services, but significantly higher than the rate of reunification for families entering shelter. Taken together, the findings from both studies contribute to the evidence underscoring the importance of housing assistance to homeless families involved in the child welfare system.

Family Stability and Child Welfare Involvement among Families Served in Permanent Supportive Housing.

This article examines the effectiveness of supportive housing in fostering family preservation and reunification for homeless families with multiple housing barriers. Results indicate that more thanhalfofthe supportive housing program families who are separated from their families by Child Protective Services prior to entering the program are reunified during the 12-month period after entering housing. The rate of reunification for supportive housing families is significantly higher than the rate for matched families who enter shelters, but not significantly different than the rate experienced by matched families entering public housing. This study provides encouraging evidence that housing for families in the child welfare system, including but necessarily limited to supportive housing, can facilitate the reunification of children.

Permanent supportive housing: assessing the evidence.

OBJECTIVES: Permanent supportive housing provides safe, stable housing for people with mental and substance use disorders who are homeless or disabled. This article describes permanent supportive housing and reviews research. METHODS: Authors reviewed individual studies and literature reviews from 1995 through 2012. Databases surveyed were PubMed, PsycINFO, Applied Social Sciences Index and Abstracts, Sociological Abstracts, Social Services Abstracts, Published International Literature on Traumatic Stress, the Educational Resources Information Center, and the Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature. The authors chose from three levels of evidence (high, moderate, and low) on the basis of benchmarks for the number of studies and quality of their methodology. They also described the evidence of service effectiveness. RESULTS: The level of evidence for permanent supportive housing was graded as moderate. Substantial literature, including seven randomized controlled trials, demonstrated that components of the model reduced homelessness, increased housing tenure, and decreased emergency room visits and hospitalization. Consumers consistently rated this model more positively than other housing models. Methodological flaws limited the ability to draw firm conclusions. Results were stronger for studies that compared permanent supportive housing with treatment as usual or no housing rather than with other models. CONCLUSIONS: The moderate level of evidence indicates that permanent supportive housing is promising, but research is needed to clarify the model and determine the most effective elements for various subpopulations. Policy makers should consider including permanent supportive housing as a covered service for individuals with mental and substance use disorders. An evaluation component is needed to continue building its evidence base.

Exiting shelter: an epidemiological analysis of barriers and facilitators for families.

This study examines the role of individual- and family-level factors in predicting the length of shelter stays for homeless families. Interviews were conducted with all families exiting one of six emergency family shelters in Worcester, Massachusetts, between November 2006, and November 2007. Analyses, using an ordinary least squares regression model, find that families with a positive alcohol or drug screen in the year prior stay 85 days longer than those without a positive screen; families leaving shelter with a housing subsidy stay 66 days longer than those leaving without a subsidy. Demographic factors, education, employment, health, and mental health are not found to predict shelter stay duration. Consistent with prior research, housing resources relate to families' time in shelter; with the exception of a positive substance abuse screen, individual-level problems are not related to their time in shelter. Efforts to expand these resources at the local, state, and national levels are a high priority.