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PRINTER'S NO. 2861
THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF PENNSYLVANIA
HOUSE BILL
No.
2445
Session of
2022
INTRODUCED BY LEE, HOHENSTEIN, HILL-EVANS, FRANKEL, SAPPEY,
SCHLOSSBERG, T. DAVIS, CEPHAS, SANCHEZ, STURLA, ROZZI, RABB,
McNEILL, MADDEN, KRAJEWSKI, SIMS, GUENST, PARKER, O'MARA,
KINKEAD, McCLINTON AND KINSEY, MARCH 23, 2022
REFERRED TO COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, MARCH 23, 2022
AN ACT
Amending Title 61 (Prisons and Parole) of the Pennsylvania
Consolidated Statutes, in miscellaneous provisions relating
to inmate confinement, providing for trauma-informed care and
training.
The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
hereby enacts as follows:
Section 1. Title 61 of the Pennsylvania Consolidated
Statutes is amended by adding a section to read:
ยง 5908. Trauma-informed care and training.
(a) Trauma-informed care requirements.--
(1) The department shall provide all incarcerated
individuals and detainees quality trauma-informed care as
specified by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services
Administration of the United States Department of Health and
Human Services.
(2) Trauma-informed care for an individual shall begin
immediately upon the individual's intake and assessment at a
correctional institution.
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(b) Correctional staff training.--Correctional staff shall
have no fewer than 16 hours of professional education related to
trauma-informed care, which shall include the following:
(1) An overview of trauma-informed care.
(2) The basic skills of trauma-informed care.
(3) Recognizing vicarious and secondary trauma for
caregivers and custodians.
(4) Cultural sensitivity.
(5) Identifying the signs, symptoms and effects of
trauma.
(6) Interacting with an individual who has experienced
trauma.
(7) Mitigating the symptoms and effects of trauma.
(8) Referring an individual with trauma to an
appropriate health care professional.
(c) Definitions.--As used in this section, the following
words and phrases shall have the meanings given to them in this
subsection unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
"Correctional staff." An individual who works with
incarcerated individuals on a regular basis. The term includes,
but is not limited to, any of the following:
(1) Medical staff.
(2) A correctional officer.
(3) A mentor.
(4) An educational instructor.
"Trauma." Any disturbing experience that results in
significant fear, helplessness, dissociation, confusion or other
disruptive feelings intense enough to have a long-lasting
negative effect on an individual's attitudes, behavior and other
aspects of functioning.
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"Trauma-informed care." An organizational structure and
treatment framework that involves understanding, recognizing and
responding to the effects of all types of trauma.
Section 2. This act shall take effect in 60 days.
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