Developing a trauma-informed workforce for the opioid crisis in a rural community in the United States: a case study

Purpose Workforce development in rural communities to address a surge in opioid addiction and overdose related hospitalizations has been an unaddressed issue in the USA. This study aims to present an integrated, trauma-informed, behavioral workforce development initiative in a midwestern rural setting in the USA. Design/methodology/approach This is a mixed method, two-phased study: the first phase tracked and analyzed two focus group conferences involving experts (n = 6) and professionals (n = 8) to develop a training protocol; the second phase provided a training (n = 101), based on the protocol to future professionals and compared competencies before and after the implementation of the training. Findings There is a need of a trauma integrated approach in providing interprofessional training connecting health-care workers in rural communities to address the current opioid crisis to bring about cohesion among integrated and interdisciplinary teams. Workforce building will need to implement best practices not only among medical providers but among community mental health practitioners in rural areas. Originality/value This is a unique trauma-informed workforce development initiative in a rural community. Such studies are extremely limited and almost non-existent. Further initiatives need to be taken in this field to identify unique differences within communities that may hinder implementation.