Minister Fernandez welcomes Online Trauma Support Training

The Western Cape Minister for Social Development, Sharna Fernandez, welcomes the start of the first Online Trauma Support Training for housemothers of funded shelters in the Western Cape that accommodate victims of violence and their children. 

Minister Fernandez said, “The role that housemothers and social auxiliary workers play in society cannot be understated.”

Minister Fernandez added, “The Covid-19 pandemic has required the provincial Department of Social Development (DSD) to use innovative ways to continue the development of housemothers at funded DSD shelters and social auxiliary workers working in the field of trauma relief.”

The Online Trauma Training support being offered by the Trauma Centre for Survivors of Violence and Torture, is taking place from 3 – 7 August 2020, via the Zoom application.

The training covers the definition of trauma and violence, the basics of trauma support, trauma responses, interventions (including protection orders, psychological first aid, support groups) and also how to care for yourself as a trauma support worker. 

The American Psychological Association defines Psychological First Aid as follows, (PFA) “PFA is an initial disaster response intervention with the goal to promote safety, stabilize survivors of disasters and connect individuals to help and resources.”

The training being offered also empowers participants to be able to provide an appropriate response to victims of trauma.

They will be able to provide psychological first aid to victims they work with and the victims of trauma will have a better chance to recover from what happened to them. Although it is the first electronic training, there is a lively interaction from the 21 participants representing approximately 11 organisations from as far as the Karoo and Southern Coast.   

“Let us join hands as women. Let us continue to uplift and empower one another so that we can rise and ensure that the future of the world is indeed a better place,” concluded Minister Fernandez.