How Hospitals and Health Systems Can Address Human Trafficking

As part of the American Hospital Association's Hospital Against Violence initiative, Hospitals in Pursuit of Excellence and the Association for Community Health Improvement held a webinar on how hospitals and health systems can prevent human trafficking. Among many forms of violence, human trafficking, a modern form of slavery, is a global problem and is increasingly being recognized as a public health concern in the United States. Health care organizations and health care professionals can help identify and support victims of human trafficking by being alert to the problem and realizing patients they are treating may be victims. By collaborating with public agencies and community-based organizations, health care organizations can raise awareness in their own communities and advocate for public policies that address human trafficking. As anchor institutions, hospitals can leverage their influence by being aware of the “supply side” of human trafficking globally.

This webinar explored the problem of human trafficking, identified approaches health care organizations can adopt to address human trafficking and provided case examples of hospitals leading the field in human trafficking prevention.

Learning Objectives:

• Describe the problem and scope of human trafficking in the U.S.
• Identify approaches health care organizations can deploy to recognize human trafficking victims and tactics to help them.
• Understand how to leverage a multifaceted approach to human trafficking prevention that addresses the issue using strategies for prevention and mitigation in addition to victim response.

Speakers:

• Roy Ahn, Associate Director, Public Health, NORC at the University of Chicago

• Laura Krausa, System Director, Advocacy, Catholic Health Initiatives

• Wendy Macias-Konstantopoulos, MD, Director, Human Trafficking Initiative, Department of Emergency Medicine's Division of Global Health and Human Rights, Massachusetts General Hospital

To view the presentation slides only click here.
To view an archive of the presentation, click view item below.