Racial Trauma: The African American Experience
Course #66920 -
- Participation Instructions
- Review the course material online or in print.
- Complete the course evaluation.
- Review your Transcript to view and print your Certificate of Completion. Your date of completion will be the date (Pacific Time) the course was electronically submitted for credit, with no exceptions. Partial credit is not available.
It is clear that acknowledgment of the historical context of racism and its current implications is a vital aspect of providing care to a diverse population. Mental health practitioners, medical providers, researchers, community leaders, advocates, activists, and laypersons should work to prevent and effectively treat the psychological and physical distress experienced as a result of the racism faced by African American clients.
This course is designed for psychologists who provide services to African American clients who have experienced racial trauma.
The purpose of this course is to provide psychologists with the knowledge and skills necessary to provide trauma-informed care to African American clients.
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to:
- Define racism and its historical and current manifestations in the United States.
- Describe the impact of structural racism and related racial trauma on African American individuals.
- Evaluate the adverse health and mental health impacts of racial trauma on African Americans.
- Outline approaches to rapport building and mental health interventions best suited for African American clients who have experienced racial trauma.
- Discuss culturally relevant approaches to promote post-traumatic growth and provide trauma-informed care.
Tanika Johnson, EdD, MA, LPC-MHSP, LMHC, NCC, BC-TMH, CCTP, is a licensed professional counselor and contributing faculty specializing in addiction, trauma, sexual assault, human trafficking, domestic violence, crisis and behavioral health interventions, anxiety, mood disorders, perinatal disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anger and impulse control, and self-management coaching. She also has experience with education consulting and serving the special education community and the exceptional needs of children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities.
Contributing faculty, Tanika Johnson, EdD, MA, LPC-MHSP, LMHC, NCC, BC-TMH, CCTP, has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
James Trent, PhD
The division planner has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
Sarah Campbell
The Director of Development and Academic Affairs has disclosed no relevant financial relationship with any product manufacturer or service provider mentioned.
The purpose of NetCE is to provide challenging curricula to assist healthcare professionals to raise their levels of expertise while fulfilling their continuing education requirements, thereby improving the quality of healthcare.
Our contributing faculty members have taken care to ensure that the information and recommendations are accurate and compatible with the standards generally accepted at the time of publication. The publisher disclaims any liability, loss or damage incurred as a consequence, directly or indirectly, of the use and application of any of the contents. Participants are cautioned about the potential risk of using limited knowledge when integrating new techniques into practice.
It is the policy of NetCE not to accept commercial support. Furthermore, commercial interests are prohibited from distributing or providing access to this activity to learners.
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The role of implicit biases on healthcare outcomes has become a concern, as there is some evidence that implicit biases contribute to health disparities, professionals' attitudes toward and interactions with patients, quality of care, diagnoses, and treatment decisions. This may produce differences in help-seeking, diagnoses, and ultimately treatments and interventions. Implicit biases may also unwittingly produce professional behaviors, attitudes, and interactions that reduce patients' trust and comfort with their provider, leading to earlier termination of visits and/or reduced adherence and follow-up. Disadvantaged groups are marginalized in the healthcare system and vulnerable on multiple levels; health professionals' implicit biases can further exacerbate these existing disadvantages.
Interventions or strategies designed to reduce implicit bias may be categorized as change-based or control-based. Change-based interventions focus on reducing or changing cognitive associations underlying implicit biases. These interventions might include challenging stereotypes. Conversely, control-based interventions involve reducing the effects of the implicit bias on the individual's behaviors. These strategies include increasing awareness of biased thoughts and responses. The two types of interventions are not mutually exclusive and may be used synergistically.