Telehealth and Human Trafficking

Description

When a trafficked child or adult sits across from you—whether in person or on a telehealth screen—you may be the only professional they’ll ever encounter who can recognize their silent plea for help. If you miss the signs, that moment may never come again.

Every clinician holds the power to recognize and respond to trafficking survivors, yet too many go unseen. This training invites you to build the skills, insight, and confidence to meet one of the most urgent clinical challenges of our time.

Dr. Mollie Gordon, Associate Professor at Baylor College of Medicine and Medical Director of one of the nation’s first academic programs addressing the mental health impacts of human trafficking, brings unparalleled expertise to this training. With decades of work caring for vulnerable patients, leading national advocacy, and publishing research in this area, she offers a rare perspective at the intersection of psychiatry, trauma, and telehealth.

Her approach blends research, lived clinical cases, and trauma-informed best practices. Clinicians will not only learn definitions and risk factors, but also gain actionable strategies for applying telehealth models of care when working with trafficked persons, especially in settings where in-person access may be limited or unsafe.

Topics include: defining human trafficking and the legal standards that shape our clinical responsibilities; distinguishing trafficking from related issues such as smuggling; identifying clinical red flags across healthcare settings; understanding trauma and its long-term impacts on physical and psychological health; applying trauma-informed telehealth interventions; and navigating the barriers, benefits, and limitations of telehealth in reaching this population.

Key Takeaways:

• Clarity on human trafficking: Recognize the red flags, nuances, and misconceptions that often prevent clinicians from identifying trafficked persons in healthcare settings.

• Telehealth as a lifeline: Learn how telehealth platforms can reduce barriers, improve continuity of care, and safely connect with vulnerable patients.

• Practical application: Gain strategies for offering trauma-informed services to trafficked persons using telehealth models of care.

Why this course?

• Critical responsibility: With up to 88% of trafficked persons interacting with healthcare providers while actively being trafficked, clinicians cannot afford to overlook this training.

• Unmatched expertise: Led by Dr. Gordon, a national leader in trafficking-informed psychiatry and telehealth, this course provides insights few others can.

• Actionable relevance: Delivered by Telehealth Certification Institute, this CE course goes beyond theory—equipping you with concrete tools for immediate application in your practice.

Learning Objectives:

• Define Human trafficking and understand the clinical red flags of trafficking healthcare settings.

• Review the goal of the anti human trafficking program and understand how these goals shifted to a telehealth platform during the covid pandemic.

• Teach healthcare providers how to offer services to trafficked persons via telehealth models of care.

The stakes are high: every overlooked signal is a chance lost to intervene in the cycle of exploitation. This course equips you to see what others miss, to act with clarity and compassion, and to use telehealth as a bridge to safety and healing.

Enroll now to ensure you are ready when that critical moment arrives.

Format and Access

This is a non-interactive, self-study course. Instruction consists of 1.5 hours of video instruction and a post-test.

Course Details

Availability: 

From the time of registration, you have six months to access the coursework.

Who Should Attend: 

This course is intended for clinicians who provide behavioral health services.

Teaching Methods: 

This is a non-interactive, self-study course. Teaching methods for this course include recorded lectures, videos, a post-test, and a course evaluation.

How to Attend: 

Course access and completion instructions.

Instructor and Disclosures

Instructor

About Mollie Gordon, MD

Dr. Mollie Gordon is an Associate Professor in the Menninger Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas. She completed medical school and residency at Barnes Jewish Hospital at Washington University in St. Louis. She is clinical faculty, the Associate Director of the inpatient Psychiatric Unit at Ben Taub Hospital and supervises residents, medical students and a team of interdisciplinary providers. She cares for adults with acute exacerbations of chronic mental illness, many of whom are vulnerable and marginalized.

Her research background is in pharmacokinetics of dopamine dependent disease pathways, and the trauma of individuals who suffer from these conditions. She has worked with survivors of the 9/11 terrorist attacks to reintegrate them back into the workplace. In 2016 she participated in the development of the first fellowship in the mental health impacts of human trafficking at an academic medical center where she is Medical Director of this program. She is a co-chair of the American Medical Women’s Association – Physicians against the Trafficking of Humans where she leads train the trainer workshops nationally. She is on the HEAL trafficking speakers bureau, has testified for the national advisory council for the office of trafficking in persons, and lectures at national meetings on human trafficking.

Recently she founded BCM division of global mental health to treat survivors of torture, trafficking and mass violence atrocities. She has published numerous papers in the field, edited a book in the space, and won numerous awards for her work.

Dr. Mollie Gordon's instructor information

Disclosure Statement: 

The instructor for this course receive compensation for their services. There are no reported conflicts of interest to disclose.

CE Hours

Credit Hours:

This course consists of 1.5 continuing education hours of credit.

Counselors:

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No, 6693.  Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified.  Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs. 

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Mental Health Counselors. #MHC-0048.

Marriage and Family Therapists: 

Many MFT licensing boards accept our courses or one of the approvals which we have from professional associations.  You can check with your board to determine if your licensing board would accept this course.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists #MFT-0135, effective May 8, 2025.

Social Workers:

Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, #1609, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 05/02/2024 – 05/02/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 1.5 clinical continuing education credits.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Social Workers #SW-0435.

Addiction Professionals:

This course has been approved by Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits. NAADAC Provider #193104, Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is responsible for all aspects of the programming.

Psychologists:

Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Telehealth Certification Institute LLC maintains responsibility for this program and its content.

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Psychologists #PSY-0128.

Art Therapists: 

Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Creative Arts Therapists #CAT-0093.

Other Professionals:

This course qualifies for 90 minutes of instructional content as required by many national, state and local licensing boards and professional organizations.  Retain your certificate of completion and contact your board or organization for specific filing requirements.

This is a non-interactive, self-study course.

Accommodations and Policies

Close Captioning is available for live webinars and recorded video presentations.

You can click on the following links to view our policies:

• Accommodations for Individuals with Disabilities.
• Cancellation Policy
• Grievance Policy
• Support Options
• Disclosure Statement