Organizational Resilience: Reducing the Impact of Secondary Traumatic Stress on Front Line Human Services Staff
Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
Secondary traumatic stress (STS) impacts thousands of people working on the front lines of the helping professions, including teachers, social workers, health workers, and clergy. This can lead to organizational dysfunction, burnout, staff turnover, less effective service provision, and stress-related disease.
This brief includes:
– An overview of STS, its risk factors, and its effects on health
– Organizational policies that reduce STS
– Strategies and resources to prevent workplace STS
– Tips for STS screening, self-assessment, and self-care
– Actions everyone in the organization can take to prevent STS