Blog

In response to an overwhelming demand for information about ACEs science, screening tools, and guidance on how to implement ACEs screening, CYW has developed a suite of online courses in order to make our training more accessible to a broader audience. Developed by a team of pediatricians, research scientists, public health experts, and clinical quality improvement experts, these courses are the first of four online courses that will aid medical providers/practitioners in understanding and...

Measuring Trauma-Informed Care: Overview of Series Federal, state, and local governing bodies are increasingly mandating trauma-informed care (TIC), requiring organizations, schools, and service systems to demonstrate they are advancing TIC in their settings. Yet, organizations and schools have little guidance about how to do so. For example, the Family First Services Prevention Act requires Qualified Residential Training Programs (QRTPs) to demonstrate effective use of a TIC framework, but...

By Dolores Acevedo-Garcia, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, January 23, 2020 The Tale of Two Boys Growing Up in Cleveland Let’s ask two hypothetical 9-year-old boys a question: What is it like to grow up in Cleveland? Each boy attends school, and enjoys riding his bike and playing with Legos. Both live in Cleveland. Beyond these similarities, their life experiences are—and will continue to be—starkly different based on multiple, complex factors that lie within their neighborhoods. [...

By Kathleen Brown-Rice, The Professional Counselor, February 2020 The theory of historical trauma was developed to explain the current problems facing many Native Americans. This theory purports that some Native Americans are experiencing historical loss symptoms (e.g., depression, substance dependence, diabetes, dysfunctional parenting, unemployment) as a result of the cross-generational transmission of trauma from historical losses (e.g., loss of population, land, and culture). However,...

From Christine Stone (Department of Human Services, Communication, Trauma-Informed Oregon, January 31, 2020 The Department of Human Services (DHS) is building a new three-story, 96,000-square-foot building in Gresham. But it’s not just another government-looking edifice. Trauma-Informed Design The building, planned for 22200 S.E. Stark Street, will have a trauma-informed design. This means creating a physical environment that promotes a sense of safety and calm for our clients and our staff.

By Sia Nyorkor, Cleveland 19 News, February 7, 2020 “When those folks are on the sidelines when black and brown bodies are being killed in our midst, it leaves a community feeling devalued, like they don’t matter," said licensed social worker, Habeebah Rasheed Grimes. It’s February, Black history month and 19 News has brought you a series of special reports, on-air and online, examining complementary life and the connection to slavery. We now focus on unresolved trauma in the black community...

New and returning lawmakers take the oath of office on day one of Washington state's 2017 legislative session. — Jeanie Lindsay/Northwest News Network As advocates prepare to see how ACEs (adverse childhood experiences) science, trauma, and resilience play out in the 2020 state legislative sessions — many beginning in January — they are undoubtedly asking: “What does a legislator want?" It may be a stretch to play on Freud’s question: “What does a women want?", but the query captures how...

Research papers this month include links between ACEs and bullying, dropping out of high school, adult disability, and the effects of countering ACEs.

Advocates, leaders, and professionals in the child health and well-being space have identified a need for concrete steps for building resilience to prevent ACEs. Current frameworks focused on ACEs fall short of including a multilevel approach, considering the role of health equity in well-being, and providing concrete, tangible steps for implementation across the life span. The empower action model addresses childhood adversity as a root cause of disease by building resilience across...

By Dan Gorenstein and Leslie Walker, National Public Radio, January 8, 2020 Improving health and lowering costs for the sickest and most expensive patients in America is a dream harder to realize than many health care leaders had hoped, according to a study published Wednesday in the New England Journal of Medicine. Researchers tested whether pairing frequently hospitalized patients in Camden, N.J., with nurses and social workers could stop that costly cycle of readmissions. The study found...

This past Friday, December 6, I attended the "Moving Equity to the Center - Part 2" forum in Fresno, CA. The morning began with the usual networking and acquiring of refreshments. The conversations were enlightening and engaging. I was able to meet several individuals who work in the Fresno community, and provided valuable insight to how issues are being confronted and addressed in Fresno County. Once we sat down we were addressed by Linda Gleason the founding Director of The Children's...

By Richard Besser, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, December 2, 2019 Next year will mark 30 years since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) became federal law—first of its kind legislation that outlawed discrimination against people living with physical or mental disabilities. It was a culmination of decades of challenging societal barriers that limited access and full participation of people with disabilities. And yet in spite of the ADA’s passage, we still have a long way to go before...