that they owe their trafficker for all that has been done for them.4 Maintaining control: This is important so that the victim will continue to complete tasks or activities for the trafficker. Strategies utilized to maintain this control, include continued isolation, physical or sexual abuse, and drug addiction.4 Many victims of human trafficking do not realize they have been trafficked until they have escaped the situation. The trafficker has spun such a web of deceit that the victim may feel their life is “normal” or that they are underserving of any other type of existence, which creates a complicated bond between the two. It is often not possible for them to just walk away. This is important to realize if you suspect your patient is being trafficked. Dental healthcare providers typically have very keen assessment skills which should be used with every patient. While there are consistent life circumstances that place people at risk for trafficking, regardless of the patient’s socio-economic status or ethnicity, ANYONE can be ensnared in trafficking. The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) describes trauma as an event or circumstance resulting in physical harm, emotional harm, and/or life-threatening harm.6 Traumatic events can impact the brain and ultimately how a person responds to certain situations. As a result of past and ongoing trauma, many trafficking victims, who may be the patient in your chair, live in a constant state of fight or flight. Traumatic events live on in the brain’s emotional center as images, feelings, and sounds. An event, such as being laid back in a dental chair and sensing the loss of control may trigger emotions causing the patient to become defensive, anxious, difficult, and/or uncooperative. Other indications of trafficking include: Tattoos or branding. Age reported may seem inconsistent. Resistant to answering questions. Over apologetic, nervous, fearful, may startle easily. Not sure of day, dates, location. Submissive, emotionally withdrawn. Overbearing/hovering person present and may speak for the patient. If there is a suspicion of trafficking, this could be a dangerous situation for everyone involved, therefore, it is important to move forward carefully. Any suspicion of or known trafficking of anyone under the age of 18 must be reported to the proper authorities. When a patient presents as difficult or uncooperative, step back and take the time to consider why. Has something occurred during the visit that triggered emotions from previous or current life events? Instead of asking “What is wrong with you?”, shift the focus to “What happened to you?” This may open the door to further conversation and allow treatment to continue. There are other actions that can create a higher level of safety, trust, and respect between the patient and dental healthcare worker. These include introducing yourself and your role, ensuring you are explaining everything that will be done during the visit, asking permission to touch the patient, and as often as possible positioning yourself at the same level as the patient.7 As a reminder, many individuals who are being trafficked are not aware they are in that situation. The role of the dental healthcare provider for individuals 18 and older is to assess the situation and provide emotional and physical support, along with helpful resources when indicated. Do not force anyone to report this situation if they are not ready to do so. Human trafficking is a very complex business model. Lives are destroyed every day by individuals who exploit vulnerable children, women, and men. If they are seen as a patient in your practice, you just can’t walk away. Take the time now to collect resources that can be used with these patients. You may be the one person who makes a difference and opens the door for escape! Resources Polaris Project: Largest movement to end human trafficking. The National Human Trafficking Hotline: This confidential hotline provides an outlet for reporting trafficking situations. Thistle Farms: Residential programs for women seeking to escape trafficking and prostitution. 1 Titchen, K. (2016, May). How to spot human trafficking. TEDxGeorgeSchool. [Video]. TED Conferences. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrxhptvEOTs 2 Polaris Project. (n.d.). Love and trafficking. https://polarisproject.org/love-andtrafficking/ 3 U.S. Department of State. (2023). Overlooked for too long: Boys and human trafficking. https://www.state.gov/wp-content/uploads/2023/12/Overlooked-forToo-Long-Boys-and-Human-Trafficking.pdf 4 Polaris Project. (2021, February 10). Love and trafficking: How traffickers groom & control their victims. https://polarisproject.org/blog/2021/02/love-andtrafficking-how-traffickers-groom-control-their-victims/ 5 Polaris Project. (2020). 2020 U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline statistics. https://polarisproject.org/2020-us-national-human-trafficking-hotline-statistics/ 6 Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (n.d.). Trauma and violence. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. https://www. samhsa.gov/trauma-violence 7 Clark, C., Classen, C. C., Fourt, A., & Shetty, M. (2019). Trauma-informed nursing practice. Online Journal of Issues in Nursing, 24(2). https://ojin.nursingworld. org/table-of-contents/volume-24-2019/number-2-may-2019/trauma-informednursing-practice/ “88% of trafficking victims access health care during their trafficking situation.” Polaris Project, Human Trafficking and the Health Care Industry - Polaris (polarisproject.org) | 9 Nov 2024
RkJQdWJsaXNoZXIy Nzc3ODM=