Bridging the Gap: Screening, Identifying, and Serving Minor Victims of Trafficking in the Emergency Department Setting

Under the FY 2018 Integrated Services for Minor Victims of Trafficking program, all grantees are required to serve all minor victims (boys and girls under age 18) of all forms of human trafficking (sex and labor). The grantee will work with OVC Program Managers and Training and Technical Assistance Providers to ensure all victims are served. The Otto Bremer Trust Center for Safe and Healthy Children (CSHC) is a child maltreatment program located at the Regents of the University of Minnesota. CSHC has implemented a CARE model of service, which provides Clinical excellence, Advocacy and prevention, Research, and Education, allowing the Regents of the University of Minnesota to serve as a local, national, and international leader in child maltreatment. The Center works closely with thier contracted service provider, the Hennepin Assault Response Team (HART) at Hennepin Healthcare, who provides medical-forensic examinations to patients who report sexual assault, sexual exploitation, and/or intimate partner violence. Through the partnership with HART and with the assistance of thier Electronic Medical Record, approximately 900 victims of trafficking in both 2017 and in 2018 have been identified who have presented to these two Emergency Departments. With $500,000 in funding, the grantee will: use a short screening tool to identify minors at-risk for trafficking; provide a comprehensive trafficking screening, medical services, and crisis intervention services by HART for patients who score positive on the screening tool; provide case management services to victims and caregivers by CSHC; and ensure wraparound services for victims and caregivers by community partners. By increasing the identification of trafficking within local Emergency Departments and providing trauma-informed case management and wraparound services, the grantee will support the healing and recovery of minor victims and their caregivers. CA/NCF