Traumatic events in childhood represent a risk factor for mental and physical health throughout life. For this reason, the Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychotherapy at Ulm University Hospital is focussing on trauma in both care and research. In recent years, the "Competence Centre for Child Protection in Medicine in Baden-Württemberg"(www.comcan.de) was established at the University Hospital of Heidelberg and the University Hospital of Freiburg on the recommendation of the Medical Structure Commission. The competence centre, which was initially launched with a strong focus on teaching, has since been consolidated.
Three professorships have been created, one W3 professorship and two W1 professorships, one of which is tenure track. The W3 professorship was initially filled by Professor Paul L. Plener, who is currently in the process of being reappointed following his appointment to Vienna.
A W1 professorship with a focus on "Epidemiology and follow-up research in child protection" was awarded to Prof Andreas Jud.
The W1 professorship focussing on "Teaching, Dissemination and Networking" was awarded to Prof. Miriam Rassenhofer.
In the field of epidemiological research, various projects have been carried out in recent years on the frequency of child abuse and child maltreatment as well as the frequency of neglect, and educational attitudes towards corporal punishment have also been investigated. A current project in cooperation with the Department of Trauma Surgery is also looking at the connection between child maltreatment and child abuse and later somatic illnesses and pain in general.
In student teaching, we emphasise the topic of childhood trauma in various forms of teaching. For example, we offer an insight into the consequences of (early) traumatisation as part of the main psychiatry lecture. In module Q10, which all students must complete, we deal with the early recognition and prevention of child abuse. In a blended-learning elective (W521), for which Prof. Plener was awarded the teaching bonus of the University of Ulm in 2015, we offer in-depth knowledge in child protection, which, in addition to epidemiology, recognition and risk factors, also deals intensively with legal and practical aspects of medical action in child protection cases.
A large part of the work in this focus area concerns dissemination into clinical practice in order to improve care conditions through evidence-based knowledge. In recent years, several e-learning programmes have been established in this area, making knowledge about the consequences of traumatic illnesses accessible to a wider audience. To date, over 6,000 participants have taken part in one of our e-learning courses. E-learning courses on the topics of early help (fruehehilfen-bw.), prevention of sexual abuse (missbrauch.elearning-kinderschutz.de), deepening additional knowledge in the care of traumatised people(https://elearning-kinderschutz.de/projekte/verbundprojekt-ecqat/) as well as a basic course in child protection (grundkurs.elearning-kinderschutz.de) and, most recently, a course for helpers who work with (often traumatised) refugee children and young people(https://elearning-kinderschutz.de/projekte/verbundprojekt-shelter/) are available. Our clinic is involved in several third-party-funded research projects, particularly in the area of refugee minors, who have often been exposed to traumatic events. The online-supported tool PORTA(www.porta-refugees.de) was created with the support of the BMG to improve the diagnosis of this group. In order to evaluate a stepped care model, we are participating in the MEHIRA project funded by the Innovation Fund(innovationsfonds.g-ba.de/projekte/versorgungsforschung/mehira-gestuftes-versorgungsmodell-zur-foerderung-der-mentalen-gesundheit-von-fluechtlingen-mental-health-in-refugees-and-asylum-seekers.60); our clinic is also currently evaluating the MEIN WEG trauma education project with the support of the World Childhood Foundation and the Käßbohrer Foundation. In the past, trauma-focused trauma therapy projects have been successfully carried out at the Ulm site, for example investigating the effectiveness of trauma-focused cognitive behavioural therapy (Tf-KBT) (treatchildtrauma.de), and the CANMANAGE project has also investigated the effectiveness of a case manager intervention for maltreated and abused children. The neurobiological changes under EMDR therapy in refugee minors are currently being investigated with the support of the University of Ulm's building block funding programme.
