Chapter 1: Recognizing and Responding to Human Trafficking in Texas, 2nd Edition (Mandatory) 1 CE Hour
By: Laura Palombi, PharmD, MPH, MAT Learning outcomes
Discuss the importance of safety planning and protocols. Identify ways to respond and follow up when encountering a potential trafficking victim, including resources for reporting suspected victims of human trafficking.
After completing this course, the learner will be able to: Understand definitions that relate to human trafficking. Describe the types of human trafficking and dynamics of human trafficking in the U.S. Describe identification and assessment strategies that can be utilized when working with potential trafficking victims. Course overview This course focuses on an overview of human trafficking; how human trafficking occurs; ways to identify those who may be trafficked, including the health and mental health professionals perceive and make treatment decisions, ultimately resulting in disparities in health outcomes. These biases, often unconscious and unintentional, can shape behavior and produce differences in medical care along various lines, including race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, and socioeconomic status. Healthcare disparities stemming from implicit bias can manifest in several ways. For example, a healthcare provider might unconsciously give less attention to a patient or make assumptions about their medical needs based on race, gender, or age. The unconscious assumptions can lead to delayed or inadequate care, misdiagnoses, or inappropriate treatments, all of which can adversely impact health Implicit bias in healthcare Implicit bias significantly affects how healthcare
impact; response and safety protocols; and victim resources. It meets the one-hour Texas requirement for healthcare professionals.
outcomes. Addressing implicit bias in healthcare is crucial for achieving equity in medical treatment. Strategies to combat these biases involve education and awareness programs for healthcare professionals. These programs help individuals recognize and acknowledge their biases, fostering a more empathetic and unbiased approach to patient care. Additionally, implementing policies and procedures prioritizing equitable treatment for all patients can play a pivotal role in reducing healthcare disparities. Ultimately, confronting implicit bias in healthcare is essential to creating a more just and equitable healthcare system where everyone receives fair and equal treatment regardless of their background or characteristics.
INTRODUCTION
because of this, it is impossible to estimate the actual number of human trafficking victims. Other inherent systemic difficulties—such as lack of coordinated data and inconsistent definitions of key terms—add further challenges to accurately estimating the number of trafficked people regionally as well as globally (Sprang et al., 2022). Because of this, healthcare providers and organizations involved with trafficked persons have been called to “increase their capacity to identify and refer people in trafficking situations and provide sensitive and safe services to people post- trafficking” (World Health Organization [WHO], 2012). Healthcare professionals are uniquely positioned to identify and intervene on behalf of trafficking victims, as outside of law enforcement, healthcare settings are among the few places where the lives of human trafficking victims may intersect with the rest of society, if only for brief periods (Trossman, 2008). Despite numerous multidisciplinary and multiagency efforts to reduce human trafficking in the U.S., this public health crisis persists. In 2021, the National Human Trafficking Hotline (NHTH) received a total of 51,073 substantive signals (phone calls, SMS, webchats, online tip reports, or emails) regarding instances of human trafficking, which resulted in 10,360 confirmed unique cases of human trafficking (NHTH Data Report, 2023). Because of this, healthcare providers across the U.S. must become well- versed in identifying individuals who may be in a trafficking situation and supporting them to safety.
Human trafficking is an extreme and heinous violation of human rights that persists around the globe, including throughout the U.S., despite extensive efforts to eradicate this atrocious crime. Human trafficking is a crime involving the exploitation of victims for the purpose of compelled labor or commercial sex acts through the use of force, fraud, or coercion. Force in the context of human trafficking includes physical restraint, physical harm, sexual assault, and/or beatings, and may also include monitoring and confinement to control victims (National Human Trafficking Hotline, 2023). Fraud includes false promises of employment, living conditions, love, marriage, or a better life, and may also include withholding promised wages, or contract fraud (National Human Trafficking Hotline, 2023). Coercion may include threats of harm to self or others, debt bondage, psychological manipulation, or document confiscation, as well as fear-inducing threats to share information or pictures with others or report to authorities (National Human Trafficking Hotline). The most vulnerable victims are typically women and children; however, victims of human trafficking can be any age and any gender. Although multiple organizations publish data and statistics concerning human trafficking, at present there is no consensus on the total number of human trafficking victims in the U.S. Many victims of human trafficking never disclose the nature of their situation, and
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Book Code: MTX1325
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