What is it about?
How do you decide which therapy to use with traumatised and distressed children? This paper outlines a treatment model which considers milieu therapy, music therapy, dramatherapy and child psychotherapy. By assessing a child's developmental level of trauma, suggestions are made about which therapy to choose.
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Photo by Sandy Millar on Unsplash
Why is it important?
The impact of abuse on a child often depends on his or her developmental level when the trauma occurred. Music therapy, dramatherapy and psychotherapy work differently and so assessing a child's emotional level of development alongside the trauma they experienced can help practitioners decide on the type of therapy. Unsurprisingly, engagement in therapy has an impact on outcomes.
Perspectives
This felt a slightly controversial paper to write 7 years ago. I think now that people are more familiar with these ideas and multi-disciplinary working is certainly more routine. I hope it gives people an insight into what it's like assessing children for therapy
Dr Caryn Onions
The Mulberry Bush Organisation
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Making meaningful connections: assessing for clinical work in a child residential setting, Therapeutic Communities The International Journal of Therapeutic Communities, November 2013, Emerald,
DOI: 10.1108/tc-06-2013-0019.
You can read the full text:
Resources
Emotional Security in the Classroom project
Emotional security (ES) as defined by the Boxall Profile, is a classroom trait that can be observed through a child’s investment in and care for their work, alongside the quality of their interaction with staff. Staff will receive training in a new academic curriculum and teacher resilience and TA impact will be maximised. Pupil and staff data will be collected to answer the overarching research question ‘Can levels of ’emotional security’ in children attending the MBS be increased through adaptations made to the school curriculum and to teacher resilience?
Mulberry Bush website
The Mulberry Bush is committed to researching therapeutic practice with children and families, particularly in residential and education settings.
Contributors
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