Human Trafficking

Before the presentation and class discussion on human trafficking last week, I had significant knowledge of human sex trafficking, but limited knowledge on human labor trafficking. I knew many of the risk factors associated with sex trafficking we discussed in class, such as lack of social support, financial concerns, housing concerns, and impaired family dynamics. I have lived in Maine my whole life, so I have learned on multiple occasions how prevalent sex trafficking is in our state, which is probably surprising to many. However, I did not know how popular labor trafficking was, especially in Maine. I don’t think I fully understood how labor trafficking worked until our class discussion last week. This really opened my eyes to different populations and occupations in Maine that could be involved in labor trafficking. I also learned a lot about the “debt” people may owe their trafficker, keeping them from leaving labor trafficking. 

            I was highly anticipating this class when we first heard about it at the beginning of the semester. I was glad that I got to obtain even more knowledge on human trafficking in the United States and in Maine. I thought it was useful to learn that there is no specific profile for a trafficker, and that they can be any race, gender, sexuality, or age. I’d like to know more about how traffickers are identified, and then what steps are/can be taken to stop trafficking. I would also like to learn more about prevention strategies that we could teach potentially vulnerable patients about human trafficking. 

            This lecture will apply to my nursing career wherever I decide to practice. I was so glad we were given cards that outlined some of the warning signs of human trafficking, so if I am in clinical or practicing as a nurse, I will have a better chance of identifying someone who is being trafficked. I also think practicing completely non-judgmental listening will help me with all patient populations, especially those that may be involved in human trafficking. I thought this principle was one of the biggest take-aways from the lecture, because being non-judgmental is the best way to gain and keep a patient’s trust so you can help them in the future. As it was said in lecture, it may take many hospital/office visits before a patient opens up about trafficking, so keeping a non-judgmental attitude is vital to helping this patient population.