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About the talks

Dr. Jess Richardson – ‘To start or not to start?: The stabilisation debate of when to start memory work with CYP with PTSD and complex difficulties’

In the last 5 years, when to start trauma therapy has been actively debated and researched with head to head trials of stabilisation approaches plus trauma therapy versus trauma therapy alone with adult populations. Guidance has moved towards avoiding unnecessary delays to the trauma therapy, since this is where the most change in symptoms occurs.

Children and young people often exist in more complex systems, with less developed executive functioning, which may impact on their need for more extensive stabilisation work prior to trauma therapy. In this talk, research relevant to this topic will be presented, alongside the Supervision Tool for Assessing Readiness for Trauma Therapy (STARTT). This enables active and individualised discussion and planning about when to start trauma therapy with Children and young people.

Learning outcomes

1. To understand the “stabilisation” debate including relevant research on this topic.
2. To understand if stabilisation is necessary as part of trauma-focused CBT for children and young people.
3. To have knowledge of the STARTT model and how this can support decision making in supervision with consideration of psychological, developmental & physical, social and risk factors that can affect when to start trauma therapy.

Prof. Dr. Elisa Pfeiffer – ‘Dissemination and Implementation of Evidence-Based Trauma-Focused Treatments for Children and Adolescents in Real-World Settings’

Evidence-based trauma-focused interventions are widely recognized as effective treatments for children and adolescents affected by trauma. However, successfully bringing these interventions into routine care remains a major challenge. This talk will provide a concise overview of evidence-based trauma-focused treatments, with a brief introduction to Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT; Cohen, Mannarino, & Deblinger, 2016) as a key example.

Building on this foundation, the presentation will focus on dissemination and implementation (D&I): what these processes entail and why they are critical for closing the gap between research and practice. Particular attention will be given to common barriers and facilitators of implementation, illustrating how these factors manifest in real-world settings.

Drawing on experiences from across Europe, the talk will highlight differences between countries and service systems, as well as challenges specific to high-risk and resource-constrained contexts. More detailed examples will include implementation efforts under war conditions in Ukraine and the delivery of trauma-focused care for refugees within routine services.

By combining conceptual insights with practical examples, this presentation aims to provide a realistic and practice-oriented perspective on implementing trauma-focused treatments in diverse and often challenging settings.

Learning outcomes

1. To understand the core components of evidence-based trauma-focused interventions for children and adolescents, including TF-CBT
2. To understand the principles of dissemination and implementation (D&I) and their relevance for clinical practice
3. To identify common barriers and facilitators of implementing trauma-focused treatments in real-world settings
4. To recognize how implementation challenges vary across countries and specific contexts, including conflict-affected regions and refugee care

Professor Rachel Hiller – ‘What helps and hinders access to best-evidenced support for the trauma-related mental health needs of care-experienced young people’

Care-experienced young people have much higher rates of mental health difficulties than the general population of youth – including trauma-related distress, such as post traumatic stress disorder. Yet, they commonly struggle to access professional support for these needs, or do access support but are not provided with best-evidenced treatments. This talk will unpack the latest evidence around barriers and facilitators to providing high quality support for the trauma-related mental health needs of this group of young people. This includes a focus on misconceptions around the mental health of care-experienced young people, the identification of needs, pathways between social care and mental health services, the delivery of interventions like trauma-focused CBTs, and the role of commissioning. The talk will conclude by considering paths forward for improving trauma-related mental health care for these young people across social care and mental health settings.

Learning outcomes

1. To understand the evidence base for the mental health needs of care-experienced young people.
2. To understand barriers in the identification of mental health needs such as PTSD, and what can be done to overcome these.
3. To understand systemic barriers to getting best-evidenced interventions to care-experienced young people, and what can be done to overcome these.

Professor Richard Meiser-Stedman – ‘Assessing and treating PTSD in young children’

Assessing post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in young children is complicated by the need to rely heavily on the report of their caregivers. Since the operationalisation of age-appropriate criteria for diagnosing PTSD in young children in the nineties and noughties, there has been an emerging body of research relating to the prevalence, presentation, aetiology and treatment of PTSD in this age-group. This led to the introduction of Pre-school PTSD diagnosis in DSM-5 in 2013, and has encouraged the commissioning of numerous randomised controlled trials. In this talk I will outline what we currently know about the assessment and treatment of PTSD in young children, and the developmental and familial factors that have to be considered when working with this vulnerable population.

Learning outcomes

1.  To understand the prevalence of PTSD in trauma-exposed children
2. To understand how PTSD is diagnosed in young children
3. To know which treatments are effective for PTSD in this age group

Dr. Connor Kerns – ‘Sources and symptoms of traumatic stress in autistic youth: Research to enhance clinical recognition’

This talk will review key findings from a series of studies focused on better understanding the sources and symptoms of traumatic stress and related conditions in autistic youth. We will consider why autistic children may be particularly likely to experience childhood adversity and how it may impact their mental health. We will then discuss why clinicians should consider a broader array of potential sources and expressions of traumatic stress to enhance recognition of trauma-related conditions in autistic children. Finally, we will share insights gained from research on a new trauma measure, developed specifically to improve detection of stressful and traumatic experiences and related symptoms in neurodiverse youth and young adults.

Learning outcomes

1. To understand autistic children’s likelihood of experiencing different forms of childhood adversity and trauma
2. To understand how sources and symptoms of traumatic stress may vary in autistic v. nonautistic youth
3. To understand strategies and tools to assess traumatic-related symptoms in autistic children.

Programme

09:30 Chair Professor Andrea Danese Welcome and Introduction
09:40 Dr. Stephanie Lewis – epidemiology of trauma and its impact
10:10 Q&A

10:20 Dr. Jess Richardson – ‘To start or not to start?: The stabilisation debate of when to start memory work with CYP with PTSD and complex difficulties’
10:50 Q&A

11:00 Refreshment & Reflection break

11:15 Prof. Dr. Elisa Pfeiffer – ‘Dissemination and Implementation of Evidence-Based Trauma-Focused Treatments for Children and Adolescents in Real-World Settings’
11:45 Q&A

11:55 Lunch
13:05 Reconnect & Resume

13:10 Professor Rachel Hiller – ‘What helps and hinders access to best-evidenced support for the trauma-related mental health needs of care-experienced young people’
13:40 Q&A

13:50 Professor Richard Meiser-Stedman – ‘Assessing and treating PTSD in young children’
14:20 Q&A

14:30 Refreshment & Reflection break

14:45 Dr. Connor Kerns – ‘Sources and symptoms of traumatic stress in autistic youth: Research to enhance clinical recognition’
15:15 Q&A

15:25 Closing Remarks
15:30 Close

Programme is subject to change

FAQs on the topic

1. Why is trauma-informed care becoming increasingly important in child and adolescent mental health services?
Many children and young people accessing mental health, education and social care services have experienced traumatic or highly stressful events. Trauma-informed care aims to help professionals better recognise the impact of traumatic stress and create services that promote safety, support recovery, and respond more effectively to the needs of children, young people and families.

2. What are the main challenges in implementing evidence-based trauma treatments in real-world services?
Although evidence-based trauma-focused interventions are effective, implementing them in routine care can be challenging. Common implementation barriers are often linked to training, dissemination, adaptation across service systems, and delivering trauma-focused care in resource-constrained settings.

3. How does trauma present differently in young people with autism?
Young people with autism may experience and express traumatic stress differently from nonautistic peers. Differences in communication, sensory experiences and emotional expression can sometimes make trauma-related difficulties harder to recognise using standard assessment approaches. Trauma may also present through changes in behaviour, emotional regulation or increased distress in everyday situations.

4. When should trauma-focused therapy begin for children and young people with PTSD?
Trauma-focused CBT is considered an effective treatment for PTSD in children and adolescents. However, clinicians often need to consider developmental needs, emotional readiness and wider support systems when deciding how and when to begin trauma-focused work, particularly for young people with more complex trauma histories.

5. Why can care-experienced children and young people face difficulties accessing trauma-focused support?
Care-experienced children and young people have higher rates of trauma-related mental health difficulties, including PTSD, but many still struggle to access evidence-based support. Common challenges can include identifying trauma-related needs, navigating pathways between social care and mental health services, and accessing trauma-focused interventions.

Meet the speakers – Dr. Stephanie Lewis, Dr. Jess Richardson, Professor Rachel Hiller, Dr. Connor Kerns, Professor Dr. Elisa Pfeiffer, Professor Richard Meiser-Stedman

Dr. Stephanie Lewis is a Clinical Lecturer in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. She studied medicine at Imperial College London, and since graduating has undertaken integrated clinical and academic training, including psychiatry training at South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust and the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London. She is currently undertaking an MRC Clinical Research Training Fellowship, and continues to work as a psychiatrist in child and adolescent mental health services.

Dr. Jess Richardson is one of three Co-Directors for CYP-IAPT Programmes, which are programmes, jointly commissioned with University College London, that train practitioners in evidence-based therapies for Children and Young People in education and health settings. She is also a Reader in Clinical Psychology Education at the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience at King’s College London.

Professor Rachel Hiller – I am Professor of Child & Adolescent Mental Health and lead the Child Trauma and Recovery research group. Our research is in the field of complex child trauma and mental health. Broadly, this work spans three areas: (i) the identification of key psychological and social processes linking trauma and maltreatment exposure the mental health and wellbeing; (ii) the development and testing of scalable mental health intervention for trauma-exposed young people; and (iii) the implementation of existing best-evidenced practice within and across social care and mental health services. Much of my research is focused on improving the identification and support of the mental health needs of care-experienced young people, including a focus on service pathways and access between children’s social care and mental health services. Our research is co-developed with care-experienced young people, caregivers, and professionals.

Dr. Connor Kerns PhD (she/her/hers), is a Licensed Psychologist as well as Professor and Director of the Anxiety Stress and Autism Program (ASAP) in the Department of Psychology at the University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada. Her clinical work and research considers the intersection of autism and mental health, with a particular focus on developing, testing and disseminating evidence-based assessments and treatments for anxiety and stress-related conditions in autistic youth. Dr. Kerns’ research examines the shared and distinct ways that anxiety and stress-related conditions may arise in autistic compared to nonautistic youth and the implications of those variations for differential diagnosis, measurement and tailored, effective interventions. Dr. Kerns has published over 120 peer-reviewed studies on these topics, funded by federal and private non-profit grants across the US and Canada. She is the primary editor of a clinical textbook, published by Elsevier/Academic Press, focused on the clinical assessment and treatment of anxiety disorders in autistic children as well as a diagnostic interview protocol, the Anxiety Disorders Interview Schedule with Autism Spectrum Addendum (ADIS/ASA) published by Oxford University Press. She has served as an advisor on national policy initiatives in the US and Canada to guide research and improve health care provision and access for autistic individuals. Dr. Kerns is also invited regularly to share her work at local, national and international venues.

Prof. Dr. Elisa Pfeiffer is an expert in trauma and trauma-focused treatments for children and adolescents. In recent years, she has conducted several multicenter randomized controlled trials on evidence-based trauma-focused interventions across Europe, with a particular focus on young refugees, children in out-of-home care, and those affected by war. The dissemination and sustainable implementation of these treatments have been central goals of her work at both the Catholic University of Eichstätt-Ingolstadt and Ulm University.