daily practice through which individuals, organizations, and societies tend to the hardship, pain, or trauma experienced by humans, other living beings, or our planet itself (Van Dernoot Lipsky, 2009). A culture of “Wellness Wednesday” was created to foster a space every month for the entire team to come together to talk about trauma stewardship. We begin by deconstructing literature about vicarious trauma, allowing for opportunities to engage in critical discussion and to hold discourse about the ways of incorporating this research and learning into our clinic community. Therapists take turns leading the topic and introduce their own creative, therapeutic arts practices to the discussion. Wellness Wednesdays have helped everyone highlight his or her clinical expertise and use expressive arts as a vehicle to put theory into practice. The clinic community engages on topics through expressive arts, such as collage making, mindfulness, yoga meditation, as well as individual and community sandtray practices. In May, we welcomed a play therapist who is a Lego Serious Play® facilitator to lead a half-day Wellness Wednesday workshop through this model. This time enhances and strengthens the clinic community, and therapist presence within clinical practice by addressing the impact of vicarious trauma to reduce compassion fatigue. This ethos fosters therapists’ capacity to enter the playroom and to connect with children and families with authenticity.


…by investing in the training and wellness of its therapists, the therapeutic work is


strengthened, creating better practice outcomes for the clients and families served.


Research and Teaching The overall model created the opportunity to add another branch to the organization: an institute for research and education. The institute is staffed by the clinic therapists and graduate students. This creates openings for employees to facilitate continuing education workshops,  programs at no out-of-pocket costs. The institute has multiple secondary gains, including enhanced graduate student education and organizational cohesion. Graduate students breathe life into the work with their ambition, ideas, and eagerness to learn. The excitement is        are challenged to support their treatment planning with research and theory by explaining their processes to the next generation of play therapy professionals. The institute also adds diversity to the work by layering teaching within a therapist’s schedule, bringing professional growth to the clinician’s life.


12 | PLAYTHERAPY | June 2018 | www.a4pt.org


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