Practitioner Resources

Phoenix Australia has a range of useful resources to help you in your work with people who have experienced trauma, whether you are a volunteer, workplace peer or manager, community worker, or mental health practitioner.

 

 

 

 

Australian Guidelines for the Prevention and Treatment of Acute Stress Disorder, Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and Complex PTSD

Click here to visit our PTSD Guidelines information page where you can follow links to the Guideline recommendations and download supporting documents.

 

Click here to visit our Fact Sheets & Booklets page where you can download or order:

  • Recovery after Trauma – A guide for people with posttraumatic stress disorder
  • Joel and the Storm – A story for children who have experienced trauma
  • What the? – A guide for teenagers who have experienced trauma
  • Helping my Children after Trauma – A guide for parents

 

 

 

 

Resources for people affected by trauma

The following resources can be downloaded, or you can order printed copies. See our Fact Sheets & Booklets page.

 

Fact sheets:

  • What is trauma?
  • Trauma and children
  • Helping yourself after a traumatic event
  • Helping children after a traumatic event
  • Helping a friend or family member after a traumatic event
  • Trauma and serving in the military
  • About posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

 

Booklets:

  • Recovery after Trauma – A guide for people with Posttraumatic Stress Disorder
  • Joel and the Storm – A story for children who have experienced trauma
  • What the ? – A guide for teenagers who have experienced trauma
  • Helping my Children after Trauma – A guide for parents

 

Mobile phone app – PTSD Coach Australia

This smart phone app is for sufferers of PTSD or posttraumatic stress symptoms. For more information, including a clinician guide, visit the At Ease website. The app is free from iTunes and Google Play.

 

 

 

 

Imaginal Exposure DVD

Treating traumatic stress: Conducting imaginal exposure in PTSD

This easy-to-follow clinician manual helps practitioners to use one of the best available interventions for PTSD – imaginal exposure, as recommended in the Australian Guidelines for the Treatment of ASD and PTSD. Visit our imaginal exposure DVD page to see more detail, view video clips, and order.

 

 

 

 

Online training programs

Case Formulation Training

This free online training program was developed by Phoenix Australia in partnership with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA). Designed for practitioners who provide treatment to veterans with mental health disorders, this training provides an insight into the unique veteran experience and the specific mental health issues veterans face. It will assist practitioners to make better sense of the often complex needs of veterans, and to develop a “road map” for more effective treatment.
To access the Case Formulation Online Training program, visit the At Ease website.

 

 

 

 

Assessment tools

The International Society for Traumatic Stress Studies (ISTSS) website hosts a collection of assessment tools including interview protocols and self-report questionnaires such as the CAPS, PCL and Trauma History Scale. The website provides information about how to use each scale, its reliability and validity, scoring rules, and non-English translations. Anyone can browse the resources and information, but you need to be a member to download the actual tools. For more information visit http://www.istss.org/assessing-trauma.aspx.

 

 

 

 

Screening tools, assessment and diagnosis for PTSD and other trauma-related issues

 

 

 

 

Clinical guideline portals

  • Australian Clinical Practice Guidelines Portal: A database of Australian clinical practice guidelines for a range of mental health and physical conditions. Access is free and open to the general public.
  • National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE): The UK’s National Institute for Health and Care Excellence provides guidance and advice to improve health and social care through the development of evidence-based guidelines and quality standards. Access is free, however some sections are geographically restricted to the UK.

 

 

 

 

General treatment resources

  • Mental Health Professional Online Development (MHPOD): An Australian evidence-based online learning resource with over 100 hours of material for people working in mental health. Topics include recovery, engagement, assessment, relevant legislation, ethics and managing comorbidity. Access to MHPOD is free but requires registration.
  • Traumatic brain injury (TBI) training: A free online resource for Australian practitioners working with people with traumatic brain injury. The website contains self-study modules, toolkits, and materials for workplace learning.
  • Mental Health Professionals’ Network webinars: The MHPN has a webinar library providing access to past webinars on a wide range of mental health topics.
  • Better Health Channel: This Victorian Government website provides up-to-date, evidence-based, and locally relevant health and medical information.
  • Australian Centre for Grief and Bereavement: Information about bereavement workshops, courses, webinars and more can be found on their website, along with information about counselling, support groups and secondary consultation.
  • Head to Health: An Australian website that helps to connect individuals to online mental health information, resources and services.
  • eMHPrac provides free e-mental health training and support for health practitioners – GPs, Allied Health Professionals, as well as service providers working with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

 

 

 

 

Research

  • Cochrane Library: An international database for Cochrane systematic reviews that examine and compare interventions for the treatment of psychological and physical conditions. Access is free.

 

 

 

 

Educational videos

Advances in Brain Stimulation Treatments

Professor Paul Fitzgerald from Epworth Healthcare and Monash University discusses advances in brain stimulation treatments, particularly Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS), with a focus on the promising work done to date in PTSD.

Full version: www.youtube.com/ABST-full

Short version: www.youtube.com/ABST-short

 

Advances in Adjunctive Treatments for PTSD

Professor Kim Felmingham from the School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, discusses a range of adjunctive treatments for PTSD, and provides the latest evidence on their effectiveness as an alternative or adjunct to exposure-based treatments.

Full version: www.youtube.com/AAT-full

Short version: www.youtube.com/AAT-short

 

Social Circumstances in Veteran Mental Health

Professor Peter Butterworth from the Centre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing at the Australian National University discusses the social determinants of veteran mental health.

Link: https://youtu.be/SCVMH

 

Mental Health and the Military Experience – Putting Research into Practice

A panel of experts explores current research themes in veteran mental health, how to incorporate research findings into clinical practice, and tips on how to keep abreast of research developments.

  • The panel members: Professor Mal Hopwood, Professor Meaghan O’Donnell and Ms Jane Nursey.
  • Facilitator: Professor Mark Creamer.
  • This panel discussion was presented by the Centenary of Anzac Centre as part of the MHPN Online Conference 2019.

Link: www.youtube.com/RP

 

 

 

 

At Ease Professional

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs At Ease Professional website provides information on assessment and treatments, professional development, understanding the veteran experience, and DVA services and resources including PTSD treatment programs for veterans and military personnel.

 

 

 

 

Annual literature scans

Phoenix Australia previously conducted a scan of the literature in the field of posttraumatic mental health particularly relevant to veteran and military populations. These are no longer being produced in this format. Past reports can be downloaded as PDFs.

 

 

 

 

Evidence Compass

The Department of Veterans’ Affairs Evidence Compass is a website which organises, reviews and synthesises the research literature relating to military and veteran communities http://www.evidencecompass.dva.gov.au.