Breaking Barriers: Trauma-Informed, Culturally Responsive Care as Social Action

NASW-WA Live Webinar
October 9, 2026, 9:00 am - 12:00 pm, PST
via Zoom

3 CE Credits 

Presented by Kayla Smith, LCSW-S, LICSW, PHD

Register Now:  https://tinyurl.com/mv87jvdf

Price: $75/NASW Members, $120/Non-Members

Webinar Summary
This webinar examines the intersection of trauma, culture, and systemic inequity in mental health care delivery. Drawing on real-world case studies, interactive discussion, and clinical frameworks, participants will explore how trauma-informed and culturally responsive practices are not simply clinical techniques — they are acts of social justice. Through the lens of Health Equity, clinicians will examine the structural forces that create barriers to care, challenge deficit-based clinical language, and identify concrete strategies to transform their practice from the micro to the macro level. Helen's Project serves as a living example of what equitable, community-centered behavioral health care looks like in action.

Goals

1. Increase clinicians' understanding of how historical trauma, stigma, and systemic barriers disproportionately impact marginalized communities' access to mental health care.
2. Strengthen participants' capacity to integrate trauma-informed and culturally responsive frameworks into direct clinical practice.
3. Empower clinicians to recognize and act on their ethical responsibility as advocates for health equity within and beyond the therapy room.

Learning Objectives
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:

1. Define trauma-informed care and cultural responsiveness and articulate the distinction between the two frameworks and their interdependence in equitable practice.
2. Identify at least three structural and systemic barriers — including stigma, financial access, and workforce representation — that limit mental health care access for underserved populations.
3. Apply trauma-informed and culturally responsive principles to clinical case scenarios involving diverse client presentations.
4. Reframe deficit-based clinical language (e.g., "non-compliant," "resistant") using a power-conscious, equity-centered lens.
5. Describe at least two ways clinical practice functions as social action, including documentation of social determinants, advocacy letters, and community partnership.
6. Identify one organizational or personal practice change to implement in support of health equity within their clinical setting.

About the Presenter:
Dr. Kayla Smith, PhD, LCSW-S, LICSW, specializes in trauma-informed, evidence-based care for adolescents, adults, and families. With years of experience as a clinician and leader in mental health, she understands how trauma impacts identity, relationships, and well-being — and how healing begins in a safe, supportive space.

Her approach blends trauma-informed care, CBT, motivational techniques, and culturally responsive practices. She believes therapy is a collaborative journey rooted in safety, trust, and empowerment.

As the founder of Helen’s Project, a multi-state nonprofit expanding access to behavioral health care, Dr. Smith is also an author, speaker, and United Way Social Innovation awardee. Her mission: to help individuals and families build resilience, restore hope, and move forward with confidence.

CE Contact Hours: 3