Forensically Sensitive Therapy (FST) - Detailed Report

• Conduct a thorough trauma assessment. The therapist uses clinical observation, interviews with parents (and sometimes teachers), assessment instruments, and various in-session activities to learn about the child's trauma issues.
• Engage the caregiver in appropriate intervention. The caregiver participates in the child's therapy sessions as appropriate. Caregivers are also invited to participate in individual treatment.
• Assess the forensic aspects of the case. The therapist takes into account the forensic aspects of the case and interfaces with Child Protective Services and the Criminal Justice System.
• Conduct a strength and needs assessment of the child. After the initial stage of rapport building and developmental assessment, the therapist begins a process of learning about the child's understanding of his or her support systems. Then the therapist looks at ways the child can be encouraged to access existing and new forms of support such as supportive and competent caregivers, safety in home or placement, resources, residential permanence, adequate school system and education plan, healthy peer group and safe neighborhood, etc
• Assist the child in articulating their abuse experience. The therapist encourages expression of affect related to the abuse using a variety of FST exercises and formats.
• Address specific behavioral and emotional symptoms. The therapist works with the child on specific behaviors and emotions and promotes healing of the existing trauma dynamics. Specific symptoms are treated primarily with psycho-education and cognitive behavioral techniques in FST.
• Enhance resiliency factors and body safety awareness. The final stage of therapy is focused on bolstering the innate resilience of the child, increasing body safety awareness, helping the child to recognize their strengths, and developing strategies for the future.
• The accompanying parent/caregiver component is called "Family Advocates", which has four components for addressing issues of caregivers:

  A) Safety planning and preservation of the caregiver-child family unit;
  B) Education for the caregiver on his or her role in the investigative
  process;
  C) Empowerment of the non-offending caregiver to build a safe and stable home; and
  D) Decrease in the likelihood of the non-offending caregiver
  allowing the alleged offender back into the home during the investigation.

Forensically Sensitive Therapy (FST) has been reviewed and it was determined that this program lacks the type of published, peer-reviewed research that meets the CEBC criteria for scientific rating of 1 – 5 . Therefore, the program has been given the classification of "NR - Not able to be Rated. " It was reviewed because it was identified by the topic expert as a program being used in the field, or it is being marketed and/or used in California with children receiving services from child welfare or related systems and their parents/caregivers. Some programs that are not rated may have published, peer-reviewed research that does not meet the above stated criteria or may have eligible studies that have not yet been published in the peer-reviewed literature. For more information on the "NR – Not able to be Rated" classification, please see the Scientific Rating Scale.

There are currently no published, peer-reviewed research studies for Forensically Sensitive Therapy (FST).