Forensic Medical Exams

If your child comes to The Treehouse, it can be helpful to give them a sense of what to expect. A balance of child-friendly information can reduce potential nerves and anxieties. We recommend something informative and simple, like:

If your child has a scheduled Forensic Interview:
“Tomorrow we will visit The Treehouse. It’s a place just for kids, where really nice people work to keep kids safe and healthy. You will get to hang out in a playroom with toys, then talk to a special grown up.”

If your child also has a scheduled Medical Exam:
“After your talk is finished, a kid’s nurse will help check your body to make sure everything’s okay, and then we will be all done.”

If your child is especially inquisitive or interested, here are several more child-friendly points to share freely with her/him:

• “The grown-ups at The Treehouse are very kid-friendly and really like helping kids and teens every single day”
• “Hundreds and hundreds of kids and teens have already come to The Treehouse to talk to the friendly, safe grown-ups and kid’s nurses”
• “The Treehouse is a very safe place for kids to talk about anything, even talking about secrets is okay here”
• “Fun snacks and drinks will be offered while you wait for (unless otherwise restricted)”
• “There are toys, games, books, crayons, markers, cars, dolls, coloring pages and more kids are allowed to play with”
• “Every child who comes to The Treehouse may receive a stuffed animal at the end of the visit”

Secondary trauma is any new, additional traumatization developed during the process of responding to—or anytime after—an existing traumatic event.

Secondary trauma differs from the initial trauma event in that it:

1. typically stems from the after-effects of the primary trauma
2. presents greatest risk of re-traumatization during the investigative process and treatment of the victim
3. is frequently caused accidentally in the course of talking to or interacting with the victim
4. can be eliminated and/or reduced greatly by employing evidence-based best-practices in child abuse investigations.

Who experiences secondary trauma?

Anyone professionally or voluntarily working in the field of trauma/crisis response may experience secondary trauma, as well as direct victims and/or those socially/emotionally connected to the victim.