Practice Guidelines and Training Curriculum for Trauma-Informed Care in Outpatient Infusion Centers with Individuals with Trauma Histories

Date of Award

Spring 6-12-2026

Document Type

Doctoral Research Paper

Degree Name

Psy.D. in Clinical Psychology

Organizational Unit

Graduate School of Professional Psychology

First Advisor

Carrie Landin

Second Advisor

Lou Felipe

Third Advisor

Andrea Maikovich-Fong

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved.

Keywords

Cancer care, Trauma-informed care, Trauma-informed cancer care, Infusion centers, Staff training

Abstract

Cancer diagnosis and treatment can be inherently disempowering and traumatizing. When a person has a trauma history, engagement in treatment may become increasingly difficult, especially during repeated outpatient infusion appointments for the administration of chemotherapy, immunotherapy, and other infusion-based interventions, partially due to the bodily distress and prolonged interaction with medical systems. To address these concerns, a review of trauma-informed care practices was conducted to establish practice guidelines and a training curriculum for working with individuals with trauma histories in outpatient infusion centers. The principles of (1) provider education, (2) safety, (3) trustworthiness and transparency, (4) community support, (5) collaboration, mutuality, and connection, (6) empowerment, voice, and choice, (7) a strengths-based approach, (8) sociocultural mindedness, and (9) provider health and wellness were synthesized from multiple trauma-informed and trauma- and violence-informed care models to explore implementation and identify setting-specific considerations relevant to infusion center practice guidelines and staff training. It is hoped that these recommendations will assist in increasing accessibility, strengthening relational safety, and improving engagement in care for cancer patients with trauma histories while also supporting providers and staff working within these settings.

Copyright Date

5-28-2026

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. Permanently suppressed.

Rights Holder

Noelle M. Grieco

Provenance

Received from author

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

69 pgs

File Size

973 KB

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