SAN ANTONIO – The San Antonio Fire Department just became the first fire department in the nation to be officially certified as a trauma-informed care agency.
Getting certified involves a long, rigorous process. KSAT has reported on these local certifications many times. We are looking closely at what goes into the process and what makes organizations so proud to acquire the title.
“A lot of people, when they’re going through a tough time, it can be really isolating,” said SAFD Peer Support Coordinator Lt. Ryan Westerhoff. ”It helps us understand each other as coworkers and gives each other a safe space, and when you have that in the work space, you can apply that to the citizens we serve.”
As part of the certification process, the Ecumenical Center in San Antonio followed SAFD for over a year as Westerhoff and SAFD leadership helped establish new policies regarding how staff interact with the public and with each other.
“So what is trauma-informed care? It’s so that we understand it’s not about what’s wrong with you, but instead it’s what happened to you,” Ecumenical Center CEO Mary Beth Fisk said.
The Ecumenical Center in San Antonio is the only organization in the country appointed by a national board to certify organizations and companies as “trauma-informed.”
“We now have over 40 organizations that are certified in our city, and I will tell you that we have another 40 that are in the process,” Fisk said. ”We have certified companies in other parts of Texas, and even out of state.”
Those organizations are in all different sectors, including:
Healthcare
Education
Faith organizations
Government entities such as Metro Health, the San Antonio Police Department, SAFD, etc.
Foster care organizations
Nonprofits
Any company or organization can apply to be certified, regardless of sector or number of employees.
What Fisk wants companies to understand is that the process is long, taking at least a year.
“We have multiple standards that have to be met,” Fisk said. ”Standards in safety, training, collaboration, trustworthiness, and organization culture.”
The companies have to prove those standards and document them.
“They’re going to survey their internal staff and customers. We want to know that if they got feedback, what did they do with it? They need a trauma-informed policy,” Fisk explained. ”They need to begin this vocabulary by asking themselves, ‘Was that trauma-informed?’ Then we have a desk review, and it’s very intensive.
“It’s where they send a sampling, how they have implemented all of the standards, and then lastly, we do a site visit.”
“It also involved updating some of our physical spaces,” Westerhoff said about the fire department. ”Some of the rooms we use for whatever purpose to make sure they’re safe and people are comfortable, and not nervous.”
Companies have been vocal about how the certification has helped them.
“It’s improved their business model, how it’s brought them more business as well,” Fisk said. ”If you’re a nonprofit and competitively looking at funding, there’s an opportunity there to differentiate yourself one from another.”
“Trauma-informed care can change an entire department, and not just the department but the community,” Westerhoff said.
She explained it’s not just about the companies, but also the benefits to employees.
Staff members who work at certified organizations can include that on their resumes and use those skills in future jobs or roles.
Most of the organizations the Ecumenical Center has certified are certified as level one.
However, there is a level two certification for organizations that want to take it a step further. There is also a level three certification reserved for specific individuals, such as workers in early childhood education or faith communities.
To learn more about certification, visit the Ecumenical Center website.
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