CULTURAL AND LINGUISTIC DIVERSITY

The phrase ‘culturally and linguistically diverse’ (CALD) is a broad term used to describe communities with
diverse languages, ethnic backgrounds, nationalities, traditions, societal structures and religions. A widely
used definition of CALD refers to those people born overseas, in countries other than those classified by the
Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) as ‘main English speaking countries’. The main English speaking
countries identified by the ABS are Australia, Canada, Republic of Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, United
Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland) and United States of America (Victorian Government,
2021).

WHAT IS TRAUMA-INFORMED CARE?

“Trauma-informed services do no harm i.e. they do not re-traumatise or blame victims for their efforts to
manage their traumatic reactions, and they embrace a message of hope and optimism that recovery is
possible. In trauma-informed services, trauma survivors are seen as unique individuals who have
experienced extremely abnormal situations and have managed as best they could” (Dr Cathy Kezelman,
2020).

Trauma-informed care is based on the understanding that:

 a significant number of people living with mental health conditions have experienced trauma in

their lives

 trauma may be a factor for people in distress

 the impact of trauma may be lifelong

 trauma can impact the person, their emotions and relationships with others.

Trauma is defined by the impact that an experience has had on the individual rather than by the event itself.

Core trauma-informed principles:

 Safety – emotional as well as physical e.g. is the environment welcoming?

 Trust – is the service sensitive to people’s needs?

 Choice – do you provide opportunities for choice?

 Collaboration – do you communicate a sense of ‘doing with’ rather than ‘doing to’?

 Empowerment – is empowering people a key focus?

 Respect for Diversity – do you respect diversity in all its forms?

Trauma-informed approaches do not involve trying to distinguish “symptoms” from the impact of trauma –

they recognise that “symptoms” are often responses to trauma

TRAUMA INFORMED CARE

Trauma-informed care shifts the focus from “What’s wrong with you?” to “What happened to you?” A
trauma-informed approach to care acknowledges that health care organisations and care teams need to
have a complete picture of a patient’s life situation — past and present — in order to provide effective health
care services with a healing orientation. Adopting trauma-informed practices can potentially improve
patient engagement, treatment adherence, and health outcomes, as well as provider and staff wellness. It
can also help reduce avoidable care and excess costs for both the health care and social service sectors

The eight foundational principles that represent the core values of trauma-informed care and practice

approach are:

1. Understanding trauma and its impact - A trauma-informed approach recognises the prevalence of

trauma and understands the impact of trauma on the emotional, psychological and social

wellbeing of individuals and communities.

2. Promoting safety - A trauma-informed approach promotes safety - Establishing a safe physical,

psychological and emotional environment where basic needs are met, which recognises the
 social, interpersonal, personal and environmental dimensions of safety and where safety

measures are in place and provider responses are consistent, predictable, and respectful.

3. Supporting consumer control, choice and autonomy - A trauma-informed approach values and

respects the individual, their choices and autonomy, their culture and their values.

4. Ensuring cultural competence - A trauma-informed approach understands how cultural context

influences perception of and response to traumatic events and the recovery process; respecting

diversity; and uses interventions respectful of and specific to cultural backgrounds.

5. Safe and healing relationships - A trauma-informed approach fosters healing relationships where

disclosures of trauma are possible and are responded to appropriately. It also promotes

collaborative, strengths-based practice that values the person’s expertise and judgement.

6. Sharing power and governance - A trauma-informed approach recognises the impact of power

and ensures that power is shared.

7. Recovery is possible - A trauma-informed approach understands that recovery is possible for

everyone regardless of how vulnerable they may appear; instilling hope by providing

opportunities for consumer and former consumer involvement at all levels of the system;

facilitating peer support; focusing on strength and resiliency; and establishing future-oriented

goals.

8. Integrating care - A trauma-informed approach maintains a holistic view of consumers and their

recovery process; and facilitating communication within and among service providers and

systems (MHCC, 2018).

NEURODIVERSITY
Whilst the World Health Organization (2024) recognises neurological variations such as autism spectrum
disorder (ASD) and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as neurodevelopmental disorders, the
broader term 'neurodiversity' is preferred by the neurodiverse community. Neurodiversity is an umbrella
term that embraces neurodevelopmental differences including ASD, ADHD, Tourette's syndrome, and
Dyslexia as natural variations in human neurology rather than deficits to be fixed

Neurodiversity is: - a state of nature to be respected

- an analytical tool for examining social issues

- an argument for the conservation and facilitation of human diversity”

NEURODIVERSE VARIATIONS
Neurodiverse variations include dyspraxia, dyslexia, ADHD, dyscalculia, autistic spectrum (ASD) and
Tourette's syndrome. Click each of the variations below to read how they are described by in the Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) IV (2000):
Dyspraxia:
Described in the DSM IV as Phonological Disorder.
The essential diagnostic feature of Phonological Disorder is a failure to use developmentally expected speech
sounds that are appropriate for the indivudal's age and dialect. This may involve errors in sound production, use,
representation, or organisation such as (but not limited to) substitutions of one sound for another or omissions of
sound.
Some forms of Phonological Disorder, involving inconsistent errors, difficuluty sequencing sounds in connected
speech, and vowel distortions, are sometimes referred to as developmental dyspraxia of speech.

Dyslexia:
Described in the DSM V as Specific Learning Disorder.
Specific learning disorder is characterised by persistent difficulties in learning and using academic skills, with
onset during the developmental period. The essential feature is a persisten problem in learning or using
academic skills as quickly or as accurately as peers during the developmental period. Thus, the individual's
academic skills are well below the average range for his or her age, gender-based peersm and cultural group.
Specific types of reading disorders are widely described as dyslexia, while specific types of mathematics deficits
are described as dyscalculia

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD):

Described in the DSM IV as Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.
The essential diagnostic feature of ADHD is a persistent pattern of inattention and/or hyperactivity-impulsivity
sufficiently severe that it interferes with functioning development.
Inattention refers to problems with staying on task, being persistent, focusing, being organised, planning and
following through.
Hyperactivity is manifested as excessive motor activity such as running about or climbing, or excessive fidgeting,
tapping, or squirming, in situations where it is not appropriate.

Dyscalculia:
Described in the DSM V as Specific Learnign Disorder.
Specific learning disorder is characterised by persistent difficulties in learning and using academic skills, with
onset during the developmental period. The essential feature is a persisten problem in learning or using
academic skills as quickly or as accurately as peers during the developmental period. Thus, the individual's
academic skills are well below the average range for his or her age, gender-based peersm and cultural group.
Specific types of reading disorders are widely described as dyslexia, while specific types of mathematics deficits
are described as dyscalculia.

Autism Spectrum:
Described in the DSM V as Autism Spectrum Disorder.
The essential diagnostic features of autism spectrum disorder are persistent deficits in reciprocal social
communication, in nonverbal communicative behaviours used for social interaction, and in developing, managing
and understanding relationships and restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests, or activities.

Tourette’s Disorder:
Described in the DSM V as Tourette's Disorder.
Tourette's disorder is characterised by stereotypical but nonrhythmic motor movements and vocalisations. The
vocal tics can be socially offensive, such as loud grunting or barking noises or shouted words, which may be
obscenities.

Strength-based discourse

Dyspraxia:
o creativity and original thinking

o good strategic thinking and problem-solving

o determination and hard-working

o highly motivated
 o able to develop their own strategies to overcome difficulties

Dyslexia
o improved visual processing and pattern recognition

o good spacial knowledge

o seeing the bigger picture, often seeing things more holistically

o mechanical aptitude

o picture thinkers

o sharper peripheral vision

o highly creative

o creativity and entrepreneurial proclivities

o 50% of NASA employees are dyslexic

ADHD
o hyper-focused

o higher levels of creativity and curiosity,

o innovation and inventiveness

o leadership abilities

o high energy, spontaneity and productivity

Dyscalculia
o creativity

o strategic and intuitive thinking

o practical ability

o problem solving

o love of words

Autism Spectrum
o average to very high intelligence

o good verbal skills, rich vocabulary

o ability to think in visual images and identify patterns

o propensity to think outside the box and generate novel solutions to problems
 o ability to absorb and retain large amounts of information, especially about topics of
special interest

o detail oriented

o ability to focus for long periods on areas of interest

o ability to perform repetitive tasks where accuracy, rules and routine are important

o reliability and punctuality

o honest, loyal, fair and just

o non-judgemental listening

NEURODIVERSITY ADVOCACY
Neurodiversity advocates encourage inclusive, nonjudgmental language. While many disability advocacy
organisations prefer person-first language ("a person with autism," "a person with Down syndrome"), some
research has found that the majority of the autistic community prefers identity-first language ("an autistic
person"). Therefore, rather than making assumptions, it is best to ask directly about a person’s preferred
language, and how they want to be addressed. Knowledge about neurodiversity and respectful language is
also important for clinicians, so they can address the mental and physical health of people with neuro-
developmental differences (Baumer & Frueh, 2021).

Despite there being no official definition or spokesperson for a neurodiversity movement, its consensual

aims can be discerned. They are to:

 shift mainstream perceptions of marginalised neuro-minorities

 replace negative, deficit-based stereotypes of neuro-minorities with a more balanced valuation of

their gifts and needs

 find valued roles for neurologically marginalised people

 show that all society benefits from the incorporation of neuro-minorities