Abstract
An in-service training program was constructed to facilitate recognition and prevention of secondary traumatic stress for mental health professionals. Secondary traumatic stress is defined as the natural consequent behaviors and emotions resulting from knowing about a traumatizing event experienced by a significant other. Graduate training programs are lacking in preparing mental health professionals for dealing with clients who have experienced trauma. A training manual was designed and constructed to facilitate presentation of the two-hour training. The training program was pilot tested at the White House Counseling Center in Carmichael, California. Participant feedback on an evaluation questionnaire indicated that most had little knowledge of secondary traumatic stress and virtually no graduate training in the topic. The in-service training program is designed to be used with mental health professionals and therapists in training but can be used with any groups that work with individuals who have experienced trauma.