Samenvatting

Within forensic populations, exposure to traumatic experiences is high. These experiences are associated with multiple mental and physical health problems later in life. Besides this, trauma may be a risk factor for the development of delinquent behavior and reduce responsiveness to forensic treatment. Treating trauma more specifically and intensively could potentially contribute to increasing the effect of forensic treatment and thus reducing the risk of recidivism. The expected symptom relief creates more room for the patient to participate in other treatment components within his or her program. Short-term, intensive trauma treatment appears to be more effective than long-term trauma treatment. This study describes the implementation, and first experiences with intensive trauma treatment within a forensic hospital. This treatment is a short-term trauma treatment consisting of eight days filled with Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), Imaginary Exposure (IE), an activating sports and exercise program and psychoeducation. According to the experience of several patients and staff members, intensive trauma treatment appears to have a short-term effect on the trauma-related symptoms of patients who participate in this treatment. It is however still unclear whether these results are long-lasting. Implementing intensive trauma treatment takes time and requires extra efforts and investment from many different staff members. For a successful implementation it is important that this time is made available organization wide. The aftercare of patients after the intensive trauma treatment is crucial, and attention must be paid to the transition back to the regular program.