Date of Conferral

6-25-2025

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Kristina Bohm

Abstract

With this project, I sought to enhance the quality of care provided to child sexual abuse (CSA) survivors by improving healthcare providers’ skills in trauma-informed communication and support strategies. The project was undertaken at a large, private behavioral health facility located in the mid-Atlantic region of the United States, where an assessment of the practice environment revealed a critical gap in provider training. This gap often resulted in missed indicators of abuse, limited emotional support, and poor therapeutic outcomes for children affected by sexual abuse-related trauma. To address this, the project implemented a targeted educational intervention grounded in current evidence to equip healthcare staff with best-practice skills for engaging and supporting young CSA survivors. Twelve healthcare providers (N = 12), including pediatric nurses, mental health nurses, social workers, and psychiatrists, participated in the staff education program. A pre- and post-test survey design was used to assess participants’ baseline knowledge and evaluate learning outcomes following the training. The average pre-test score was 48%, and the average post-test score increased to 77%. A paired sample t-test was conducted to determine the statistical significance of the observed change, resulting in a p-value < .001, indicating a statistically significant improvement in participants’ knowledge and confidence levels. These findings suggest that structured trauma-informed education can significantly improve the ability of mental health professionals to recognize signs of abuse, respond appropriately to trauma-related behaviors, and provide empathetic, competent care.

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