Date of Award

1-1-2018

Document Type

Open Access Thesis

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Department

Yale University School of Nursing

First Advisor

Joan Kearney

Abstract

Women and children are the fastest growing segment of the homeless population and the United States has more homeless women than any other Industrialized nation (Committee on Health Care for Underserved Women, 2013). Many homeless women experience lifelong trauma and are increasingly at risk for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) (Goodman et al, 1995). Although Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT) is a gold standard treatment for PTSD, homeless women face a variety of barriers when trying to access this type of care including cost, stigma, and geographic inaccessibility (Dutton et al, 2013). Mindfulness may be a good treatment alternative because once learned it can be used in a variety of circumstances regardless of whether homeless women have access to housing, health insurance, mental health treatment, or income. The overall goal of this capstone was to develop a brief trauma-informed mindfulness intervention for PTSD that is tailored specifically for homeless women who have been and continue to be exposed to trauma. The development of the intervention was based on a comprehensive review of the literature, validated by a professional expert panel and a group of homeless women and piloted at the Tillary Street Women’s Shelter. In addition, a brief interview developed by the author and Dr. Joan Kearney was used with all shelter residents to further inform and refine the intervention.

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