The Restorative Advocacy Initiative™ is Stewards of the Temple's signature educational series, designed to strengthen healthcare advocacy through trauma-informed education, health literacy, and values-based healthcare decision support.

More than a single workshop, the Initiative is a comprehensive learning experience that equips individuals, caregivers, veterans, community leaders, and healthcare advocates with practical knowledge and evidence-informed strategies to navigate healthcare with confidence, compassion, and dignity.

Participants explore how trauma, moral injury, chronic illness, caregiving responsibilities, grief, and other invisible burdens can influence communication, trust, decision-making, and healthcare experiences. Through interactive instruction, guided reflection, practical tools, and real-world case studies, participants develop the skills needed to advocate effectively while honoring each person's unique values, goals, and lived experiences.

Whether preparing for healthcare visits, supporting loved ones, facilitating community education, or strengthening advocacy within healthcare settings, the Restorative Advocacy Initiative provides a structured pathway toward more informed, collaborative, and person-centered healthcare engagement.
 

Two Comprehensive Learning Pathways

The Restorative Advocacy Initiative is organized into two complementary educational pathways that may be completed independently or together as a comprehensive certificate program.
 

Pathway I

Trauma, Moral Injury, & Recovery-Informed Advocacy

Explore how trauma, moral injury, chronic illness, caregiver stress, and other invisible burdens influence healthcare communication, trust, participation, and advocacy. Participants learn compassionate, recovery-informed approaches that promote dignity, resilience, and meaningful engagement throughout the healthcare journey.

Topics include:

• Foundations of Restorative Advocacy
• Trauma-Informed Advocacy
• Moral Injury Awareness
• Invisible Burdens in Healthcare
• Recovery-Informed Communication
• Practical Advocacy Applications.

Pathway II

Values-Based Healthcare Decision Support

Develop practical skills that help individuals and families make healthcare decisions aligned with their personal values, goals, beliefs, and preferences. Participants learn structured approaches to shared decision-making, advance care planning, healthcare advocacy, and meaningful communication during complex healthcare situations.

Topics include:

• Shared Decision-Making
• Health Literacy
• Advance Care Planning
• Healthcare Proxies & Advance Directives
• Family Communication
• Preparing for Healthcare Conversations
• Advocacy Planning

What Makes This Initiative Different?

Unlike traditional healthcare advocacy training, the Restorative Advocacy Initiative recognizes that healthcare decisions are influenced not only by medical information, but also by personal experiences, relationships, emotional wellbeing, cultural perspectives, and deeply held values.

Our educational approach integrates:

• Health Literacy
• Trauma-Informed Principles
• Moral Injury Awareness
• Recovery-Informed Communication
• Values-Based Decision Support
• Practical Healthcare Advocacy
• Whole-Person Wellbeing

This integrated framework helps participants move beyond simply understanding healthcare information to developing the confidence and skills needed to participate meaningfully in healthcare decisions.

Who Should Attend?

The Restorative Advocacy Initiative is designed for:

• Individuals navigating healthcare decisions
• Family caregivers
• Veterans and military families
• Community health advocates
• Faith and community leaders
• Patient navigators
• Peer support specialists
• Community organizations
• Healthcare educators
• Anyone seeking to strengthen healthcare communication and advocacy skills

Learning Experience

Each educational pathway combines evidence-informed instruction with practical application through:

• Interactive presentations
• Guided discussions
• Case studies
• Reflection exercises
• Healthcare advocacy tools
• Communication practice
• Participant workbooks
• Resource guides
• Action planning

Participants leave with practical resources they can immediately apply within their own healthcare journeys, families, and communities.

Coming Soon

The Restorative Advocacy Initiative™ is being developed as a comprehensive educational certificate series featuring multiple learning modules, facilitator resources, participant workbooks, and community-based training opportunities.