HEAL (Health, Education, Advocacy, Linkage) Trafficking’s mission is to lead innovative and survivor-informed health solutions to eradicate human trafficking in our communities worldwide. Approximately 40.3 million people are trafficked each year, and the majority come through a health care system’s doors seeking medical attention. HEAL works with hospitals, health centers and clinics, prehospital care centers, and all other physical and mental health-related venues where trafficked persons receive care. Currently, too many nurses, doctors, and other health care personnel aren’t equipped to respond to human trafficking in a safe, trauma-informed manner, and as a result, critical opportunities to intervene are often missed, and trafficked persons are subjected to further harm. Utilizing a three-pronged approach HEAL convenes across the entire anti-trafficking space to make a life-changing difference. HEAL educates and empowers health care providers to understand the contexts in which trafficking occurs to be prepared and able to respond to those who have experienced trafficking or are at risk; builds the capacity of health systems to identify and support trafficked persons with approaches and policies designed to help survivors take the lead in accessing the services they need; and advocates for health-informed approaches to trafficking that are survivor-informed, evidence-based, public health-grounded, and trauma-informed. HEAL currently engages with a global network of more than 4,000 health care workers and other multidisciplinary professionals, including survivors of human trafficking, in 50 countries. While there are many organizations globally working to put an end to human trafficking, there are very few doing so with HEAL’s expertise and laser focus on the physical and mental health of trafficking victims and the practitioners who treat them. HEAL’s voices are heard and respected as recognized experts in the field.
