Health Care Practitioner Human Trafficking Training

Texas Occupations Code, Sections 116 and 301, requires the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) to approve training courses on human trafficking. HHSC must include at least one training course that is free of charge, post the list of approved courses on the HHSC website, and update the list of approved courses as necessary.

HEART, or “Hearing, Evaluating, Activating, Resourcing and Training,” is a free online training provided by HHSC. Available to all direct-service health care providers, HEART teaches how to identify and respond appropriately to potential human trafficking victims. Click this link to register and complete the HEART training.

HEART provides the following continuing education (CE) credits for licensed health care providers:

  • Physicians: 1.5 American Medical Association Physician’s Recognition Award (AMA PRA) Category 1 Credit, including 1.5 medical ethics and/or professional responsibility credits
  • Pharmacists: 1.5 AMA PRA Category 1 Credit
  • Nurses: 1.5 contact hours of Continuing Nursing Education
  • Licensed Marriage and Family Therapists: 1.5 credit hours, including 1.5 ethics credits
  • Licensed Professional Counselors: 1.5 LPC credit hours, including 1.5 hours in professional ethics
  • Licensed Psychologists: 1.5 professional development and 1.5 professional ethics hours
  • Social Workers: 1.5 hours of credit and 1.5 hours in professional ethics
  • Licensed Nursing Facility Administrators: 1.5 continuing education hours
  • Certified Health Education Specialists: 1.5 Category 1 contact education hours
  • Certified Public Health: 1.5 Recertification Credits
  • Registered Sanitarians: 1.5 hours of continuing education credit
  • All other health care licensees will receive a non-CE certificate of completion.

HHSC recently revised standards for reviewing human trafficking training courses. View the revised HHSC Human Trafficking Training Standards (PDF). HHSC is currently reviewing all courses, including previously approved courses, according to the new training standards, and the revised list of approved courses will be posted online soon.

Email HHSC Human Trafficking with any questions.