Ingrid Mürrle of the National Center for Child Traumatic Stress introduces a set of five implementation tools that agencies can use when bringing in a new practice. These tools inform feasibility, alignment, and sustainability as agencies consider the new practice’s fit, readiness, and context. These five tools, highlighted with practical applications of their use, are the following: NCTSN (National Child Traumatic Stress Network) Intervention Fact Sheets; NCTSN Readiness Checklist; NIRN (National Implementation Research Network) Hexagon Tool; CEBC (California Evidence-Based Clearing House for Child Welfare) Comparison Tool; and SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) EBPs (Evidence-Based Practices) Resource Center. Each of these tools support different phases of an agency’s use of a new trauma-informed intervention to meet the needs of its community.

Resources

1. Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute. (2025). Hexagon tool: Exploring context. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, National Implementation Research Network. https://implementation.fpg.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/Hexagon-Tool.25.06... [2]
2. Metz, A., & Louison, L. (2018). The hexagon tool: Exploring context. National Implementation Research Network, Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Based on Kiser, Zabel, Zachik, & Smith (2007) and Blase, Kiser, & Van Dyke (2013). https://implementation.fpg.unc.edu/wp-content/uploads/NIRN-Hexagon-Discu... [3]
3. National Child Traumatic Stress Network. (n.d.). Intervention fact sheets. https://www.nctsn.org/interventions [4]
4. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. (n.d.). Evidence-based practices resource center. https://www.samhsa.gov/libraries/evidence-based-practices-resource-center [5]
5. Walsh, C., Rolls Reutz, J., & Williams, R. (2015). Selecting and implementing evidence-basedpractices: A guide for child and family serving systems [2nd ed.]. San Diego, CA: California Evidence-Based Clearinghouse for Child Welfare. https://www.cebc4cw.org/implementing-programs/guide/ [6]