HLTASEW003 Provide support to clients affected by loss, grief or trauma

Release: 1

HLTASEW003 Provide support to clients affected by loss, grief or trauma

Modification History

Not applicable.

Application

This unit describes the performance outcomes, skills and knowledge required to provide primary support to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander clients affected by grief, loss or trauma. It requires the ability to use empathy, sensitivity and culturally safe communication skills to clarify the client’s experience and offer appropriate support, referral and information. Support is based on a sound knowledge of how loss, grief and trauma impact on Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander communities.

This unit is specific to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people working as health workers or health practitioners. They work as part of a multidisciplinary primary health care team to provide primary support to Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander clients but this unit does not provide skills for counselling clients.

The skills in this unit must be applied in accordance with Commonwealth and State or Territory legislation, Australian standards and industry codes of practice.

No regulatory requirement for certification, occupational or business licensing is linked to this unit at the time of publication. For information about practitioner registration and accredited courses of study, contact the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Practice Board of Australia (ATSIHPBA).

Pre-requisite Unit

Nil

Competency Field

Social and Emotional Wellbeing

Unit Sector

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Health

Elements and Performance Criteria

ELEMENTS	PERFORMANCE CRITERIA
Elements describe the essential outcomes	Performance criteria describe the performance needed to demonstrate achievement of the element.
1. Clarify client experience of loss, grief or trauma.	1.1. Identify and work within the scope and limitations of own role in supporting clients experiencing loss, grief and trauma. 1.2. Identify own values and attitudes about loss, grief and trauma and ensure that these do not negatively impact professional interactions. 1.3. Seek information from client about their experience of loss, grief and trauma and its impacts. 1.4. Show empathy, sensitivity and professionalism in all interactions. 1.5. Take account of historical and trans-generational impacts of loss, grief or trauma on Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people when interacting with clients. 1.6. Identify situations of imminent risk to the health and safety of the person or others and make appropriate referrals for crisis intervention.
2. Support clients to cope with loss, grief and trauma.	2.1. Communicate consistently in culturally appropriate and safe ways. 2.2. Show respect for the different ways that individuals, families and communities express and respond to loss, grief and trauma. 2.3. Identify and promote the use of client’s own support networks in the healing process. 2.4. Provide information to clients about self-care strategies for coping with loss, grief and trauma. 2.5. Suggest formal and informal support options to clients and establish their preferences for their own healing.
3. Provide resources and information about loss, grief and trauma support services.	3.1. Provide culturally appropriate consumer based education resources about managing loss, grief and trauma to clients and their families. 3.2. Inform clients about available loss, grief and trauma support services and facilitate access according to client needs and preferences.
4. Complete documentation and provide follow-up support.	4.1. Update client records to include details of services, information and referrals provided to client, according to organisational procedures. 4.2. Plan and provide continuity of support in consultation with client and multidisciplinary team. 4.3. Organise follow-up support for clients using organisational client information systems and follow-up procedures.

Foundation Skills

Foundation skills essential to performance in this unit, but not explicit in the performance criteria are listed here, along with a brief context statement.
SKILLS	DESCRIPTION
Reading skills to:	interpret detailed and sometimes unfamiliar plain language consumer based education resources.
Writing skills to:	use fundamental sentence structure, health terminology and abbreviations to complete forms and reports that require factual and subjective information.
Oral communication skills to:	use language and terms sensitive to clients’ values and emotional state ask open and closed probe questions and actively listen to elicit information and preferences from clients.
Learning skills to:	use information provided in credible evidence based consumer resources to update and extend knowledge of support services for loss, grief and trauma.
Initiative and enterprise skills to:	source information that meets the specific needs of clients and families.

Unit Mapping Information

This unit supersedes and is not equivalent to HLTAHW051 Respond to loss, grief and trauma.

Links

Companion Volume implementation guides are found in VETNet - https://vetnet.gov.au/Pages/TrainingDocs.aspx?q=ced1390f-48d9-4ab0-bd50-b015e5485705