Tagged With "child sexual abuse"
Blog Post
A Better Way to Investigate Rape (www.startribune.com)
This article by Brandon Stahl, Jennifer Bjorhus, and Maryjo Webster recently published in the Star Tribune . It is part 8 of a series entitled, Denied Justice: When rape is reported and nothing happens. How Minnesota's criminal justice system has failed victims of sexual assault. To read this entire article, go here and find an excerpt below. To read the entire series, go here . Again, to read this article by Brandon Stahl, Jennifer Bjorhus, and Maryjo Webster, go here and for the rest of...
Blog Post
A workshop for professionals who have survived sexual abuse or assault.
“Survivor Voices: Honoring our Whole Selves in the Field of Healing and Justice” That’s the title of the workshop my colleague and sister survivor, Dr. Emily Samuelson, and I offered at the Delaware Coalition Against Domestic Violence Conference on May 6, 2019. Our workshop is a unique and supportive environment for survivors of sexual assault and abuse who are working in the field of advocacy and service to survivors. In some cases it’s the first time they’re sitting in a circle comprised...
Blog Post
ACEs Connection's Inclusion Tool makes sure nobody's left out
We developed ACEs Connection's Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Tool — called the Inclusion Tool, for short — to ensure that ACEs initiatives across the world focus on being inclusive when forming a steering committee, recruiting leaders, providing education about ACEs science, recruiting members, or providing resources and services within their communities. The more inclusive your ACEs initiative is, the more diverse it will be, giving your initiative a real shot at achieving equity and...
Blog Post
ACEs Research Corner — January 2020
Research papers this month include links between ACEs and bullying, dropping out of high school, adult disability, and the effects of countering ACEs.
Blog Post
ACEs Research Corner — November 2019
[Editor's note: Dr. Harise Stein at Stanford University edits a web site -- abuseresearch.info -- that focuses on the health effects of abuse, and includes research articles on ACEs. Every month, she's posting the summaries of the abstracts and links to research articles that address only ACEs. Thank you, Harise!! -- Jane Stevens] Jackson DB, Chilton M, Johnson KR, Vaughn MG. Adverse Childhood Experiences and Household Food Insecurity. Am J Prev Med. 2019 Nov;57(5):667-674. PMID: 31522923...
Blog Post
ACEs Science and Racism
This is a collection of resources regarding structural racism and trauma. This list aims to give a broad overview and is not all-inclusive. We welcome suggestions; if you have any, please comment below! The titles below and the PDFs in attachments are in alphabetical order. BSC Full Report Trauma Resilient Informed City Baltimore: This is the full report of the work, data, lessons, and direct quotes from several teams of people from various backgrounds in the Baltimore community as they...
Blog Post
At an HIV Clinic, Patients and Staff Have a Voice in Shaping Trauma Informed Care
Dr. Edward Machtinger, director of the Women and HIV Program, front row, center and clinic staff To the casual observer, the offices of the Women and HIV Program at the University of California San Francisco look like any other primary care clinic. There’s a waiting room with vinyl-covered chairs for the clinic’s patients. Staff check in patients from a non-descript desk ringed with a bank of computers. A video screen promotes the clinic’s services. But as you make your way further into a...
Blog Post
At an HIV Clinic, Patients and Staff Have a Voice in Shaping Trauma Informed Care
Dr. Edward Machtinger, director of the Women and HIV Program, front row, center and clinic staff To the casual observer, the offices of the Women and HIV Program at the University of California San Francisco look like any other primary care clinic. There’s a waiting room with vinyl-covered chairs for the clinic’s patients. Staff check in patients from a non-descript desk ringed with a bank of computers. A video screen promotes the clinic’s services. But as you make your way further into a...
Blog Post
Case Statement on Trauma Informed Approaches
Attached is a Case Statement on Trauma Informed Approaches--it is a review of the Greater Harrisburg Area's and beyond's ACE scores, the outcomes of these ACEs and some ideas of how to resolve the negative consequences of this crisis of epidemic proportions. Please use it to advance the cause of moving from the bad news of ACEs towards the good news of becoming trauma informed and resilient. I would also welcome your comments, questions and recommendations! Thank you.
Blog Post
COLLABORATION, GRASSROOTS ENGAGEMENT, FOCUS MODEL POWERFUL COMBINATION
In June, a group of Crawford County residents who are active participants in local work to create a trauma-informed community had the opportunity to attend a six-day workshop in Pittsburgh led by Reverend Paul Abernathy. Reverend Abernathy is the Director of FOCUS Pittsburgh and is part of a coalition that is leading the way in trauma-informed community development ( TICD ). We were joined by other groups from across the country including folks from Petersburg , Virginia , Richmond ,...
Blog Post
Coronavirus, Child Welfare and Juvenile Justice: A Running Thread [chronicleofsocialchange.org]
By The Chronicle of Social Change Staff, March 18, 2020 For the past two days , The Chronicle of Social Change has been adding to a list of issues that child welfare agencies should pay attention to. We have locked that article, which you can access here . Going forward, we will continue to publish separate news pieces about the virus and its impact on youth services, and we will also aggregate our coverage on this running thread. Check here for regular news briefs, links to our stories and...
Blog Post
Criminal Records Create Cycles of Multigenerational Poverty [americanprogress.org]
By Jaboa Lake, Center for American Progress, April 15, 2020 As many as 1 in 3 people in the United States have criminal records, creating barriers across several domains. Certain groups in particular—including people of color , sexual minorities , transgender and nonbinary people , people with disabilities , people with serious mental illness , and people living in poverty —experience disproportionate, negative impacts related to the criminal legal system. These disparities reflect...
Blog Post
Disability Inclusion: Shedding Light on an Urgent Health Equity Issue [rwjf.org]
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...
Blog Post
Domestic Violence and Workplaces COVID-19 Resources [futureswithoutviolence.org]
COVID-19, Domestic Violence and the Workplace For some survivors of domestic violence, going to work or school can provide safe haven and respite from the abuse experience at home or in interpersonal and familial relationships. And the added stress of close quarters created by social distancing measures may indeed exacerbate violence experienced at home. The site provides tips on that may help supervisors and coworkers recognize when a colleague may be experiencing violence at home, how to...
Blog Post
Erasing My ACES
Why I hid ACES from my medical records in order to receive equal treatment.
Blog Post
Essentials for Childhood Framework
From the CDC’s Injury Prevention & Control, Division of Violence Prevention: "Safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments are essential to prevent child abuse and neglect and to assure all children reach their full potential. The Essentials for Childhood Framework proposes strategies communities can consider to promote relationships and environments that help children grow up to be healthy and productive citizens so that they, in turn, can build stronger and safer families and...
Blog Post
Immigrant teens, parents explore ACEs, resilience in 5-week course with family doc
Dr. Angela Bymaster, a family doctor in San Jose, Calif., was determined to find a way to teach ACEs science to her patients. Teens would come to the Washington Neighborhood Clinic clearly depressed by a range of problems at home that were contributing to risky sexual behavior and marijuana use, as well as preventable health problems like extreme obesity.
Blog Post
Introducing Lisa Wright, Community Manager: Becoming Trauma-Informed & Beyond
Hello Trauma-Informed & Beyond Community! I am excited to be one of the community managers for this new ACEs Connection community. I have worked as an outpatient trauma-focused treatment clinical social worker since 1993. My work has included providing treatment for children, teens and adults who have experienced sexual abuse, physical abuse, exposure to violence (community, family and interpersonal), witness to homicide and those with problem sexual behavior/sexual offending histories.
Blog Post
Introducing NEW Becoming Trauma-Informed & Beyond Community
Earlier this year @Dawn Daum wrote to us when she was ready to share ACEs science with people in the organization she works in to make a case for moving towards more trauma-informed care for the benefit of the staff and those they serve. She was frustrated because almost all the training and resources she found were geared towards schools, clinical staff or to organizations working with children and families rather than ACE-impacted adults in the workplace and who are...
Blog Post
Join the National Council's Trauma-informed Learning Community
Resilience is the process of adapting well in the face of trauma, such as physical or sexual abuse, neglect or family dysfunction. And what is one of the most important factors in building resilience? Healing, hopeful, honest and trusting relationships. Those relationships are the heart of the work we do and the people we serve. The National Council for Behavioral Health’s 9th Trauma-Informed, Resilience-Oriented Approaches Learning Community is a year-long initiative that provides you with...
Blog Post
Launching a Revolution [hsph.harvard.edu]
By Madeline Drexler, Harvard Public Health, Winter 2020 In 2007, pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris, MPH ’02, set out on an idealistic mission: to deliver quality medical care to one of San Francisco’s poorest and most underserved neighborhoods—Bayview-Hunters Point, in the isolated southeastern corner of the city. Before Burke Harris arrived on the scene, only one pediatrician was serving the neighborhood’s 10,000 children. The community’s plight was starkly apparent in its ZIP code. In 17 of...
Blog Post
ACEs Science Champions Series: Meet Florida's Johnny Appleseed. She plants seeds of ACEs science!
Dr. Mimi Graham is Florida’s Johnny Appleseed, but instead of planting apple trees, she’s been seeding hundreds of ACEs-science-informed schools, courts, juvenile detention centers, hospitals, childcare centers, home visiting programs, mental health agencies, law enforcement agencies, and drug treatment centers. Graham, who has served as director of the Florida State University Center for Prevention and Early Intervention Policy in Tallahassee since 1993, focuses on early childhood,...
Blog Post
Mental Health, Social Adversity, and Health-Related Outcomes in Sexual Minority Adolescents: A Contemporary National Cohort Study [thelancet.com]
By Background Sexual minority adolescents are more likely to have mental health problems, adverse social environments, and negative health outcomes compared with their heterosexual counterparts. There is a paucity of up-to-date population-level estimates of the extent of risk across these domains in the UK. We analysed outcomes across mental health, social environment, and health-related domains in sexual minority adolescents compared with their heterosexual counterparts in a large,...
Blog Post
Only 3 States Have a Gay-Straight Alliance in More Than Half of Their High Schools [childtrends.org]
By Dominique Parris and Brandon Stratford, Child Trends, November 5, 2019 In 45 states and the District of Columbia, less than half of all high schools report having a gay-straight alliance (also known as a genders and sexualities alliance, or GSA), according to 2016 data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among the 48 states (as well as the District of Columbia) that provide data, only three states (New York, Connecticut, and Massachusetts) can claim that more than half of...
Blog Post
Project FORECAST - Becoming a Trauma-Informed Workforce
TRAINING THE WORKFORCE BY INCREASING KNOWLEDGE AND BUILDING SKILLS Project FORECAST uses simulation-based learning experiences to develop trauma-informed critical thinking skills. Take advantage of this free opportunity to become a FORECAST facilitator and join us in developing a trauma-informed workforce. If you train students or child-serving professionals in the fields of: � Child protection � Law enforcement � Juvenile justice � Mental or behavioral health � Healthcare Join Project...
Blog Post
Report: ACEs and trauma-informed care across 8 countries
The International Initiative for Mental Health Leadership (IIMHL) is a virtual international collaborative which aims to strengthen leadership and thereby improve services for people with mental health or addiction issues. Eight countries belong to IIMHL: Australia, Canada, England, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland, Sweden and the US. Countries’ pay a small amount to belong and in exchange there are regular communications on innovation, research and national work plus every 16 months a...
Blog Post
Report: Solutions To Stop Sexual Violence Against Children [npr.org]
By Susan Brink, NPR.org, November 19, 2019 Sexual violence against children happens everywhere: in wealthy enclaves, in slums, in suburbs, in rural villages. Invariably, it happens in secret: in the privacy of family homes, in dark corners of schools and churches, and in murky shadows at neighborhood, community, sporting and scouting events. It happens often, and periodically groups put out reports to call attention to the issue. "That's usually where the story stops," says Daniela Ligiero,...
Blog Post
Resource List -- Trauma-Informed Guides, Presentations, & Self-Assessment Tools
The resources listed in this blog focus on how to implement trauma-informed and resilience-building practices based on ACEs science.
These materials can be used by organizations, agencies, programs, and communities to better understand how to bring a trauma-informed lens to their work.
Resources are divided according to format type (guide/toolkit, presentations, videos, webinars) and organized alphabetically.
Blog Post
Spotlight: An ACEs Connection community, Resilient Sacramento, tackles the issue of the traumatic impacts of racism and oppression
Resilient Sacramento has recently made explicit, their commitment to doing trauma-informed education & engagement that centers race, and other forms of structural oppression, as sources of trauma. The resources shared in a recent Resilient Sacramento meeting are described here for the entire ACEs Connection community. Please add your resources to the comments!
Blog Post
The implicit bias of, “Mental Illness” and “mentally ill”, a lexicon of hurt.
How can we heal from the implicit bias of “ Mental Illness ” and “ mentally ill ”? I hear these words and it sounds like fingernails scraping down the chalkboard. “ The stain of dehumanization colors the mind, body and spirit and it is not so easily washed away.” - Michael Skinner Recently I read a blog post at the ACEsConnection website, “Erasing My ACES” by Sirena Wheeler. It was posted on April, 19, 2020. It struck a chord with me, many in fact and it put me on a spiral down memory lane.
Blog Post
The Rise of the Trauma-Informed Mothers
The next generation is less likely to wear predisposed shackles of trauma because as trauma-informed parents we are re-wiring the traumatically stressed DNA that was passed down to us.
Blog Post
The Trauma-Informed Supervisor Training Tool
That is the question that so many of us champions of change are asking ourselves right now. Luckily, the information is and logistics of how to make this happen are becoming clearer. Thank you to @Christina Cunningham, Prevention Coordination Specialist for the Fairfax County Department of Neighborhood and Community Services for allowing me to share this resource with our community. (see attached PDF file) It has been a valuable tool in helping me coordinate an agency training on the...
Blog Post
The Trauma Resiliency Model: A “Bottom-Up” Intervention for Trauma Psychotherapy (Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association)
Grabbe L, Miller-Karas E. The Trauma Resiliency Model: A “Bottom-Up” Intervention for Trauma Psychotherapy. Journal of the American Psychiatric Nurses Association. 2017; 24 (1): 76-84.
Blog Post
TIC: News and Notes for November 2019
ACEs, Adversity's Impact Podcast: Dr. Nadine Burke Harris Vital Signs: Estimated proportion of adult health problems attributable to adverse childhood experiences and implications for prevention - 25 states, 2015-2017 Animal study shows how stress and mother's abuse affects infant brain LGBTQ, traumatized homeless youth more vulnerable to being trafficked: Report How do these pediatricians do ACEs screening?Early adopters tell all When family relationships become toxic: The trauma of...
Blog Post
TIC: News and Notes for the Week of July 8, 2019
ACEs, Adversity's Impact ACEs linked to higher health care costs in adulthood Beyond the ACE score: Examining the relationship between timing of developmental adversity, relational health and developmental outcomes in children Toxic stress: The other health crisis politicians should be talking about California doctors to begin screening for trauma Lupus patients with adverse childhood experiences report worse disease activity and overall health, study says Dr. Gabor Mate on childhood trauma,...
Blog Post
Translating Child Adversity Data into Actionable Information [NACCHO] Sept 2018
The California Essentials for Childhood (EfC) Initiative launched a new set of child adversity and resilience data indicators on Kidsdata.org Furthermore, the initiative created state and local dashboards to bring together sources of data that represent a broader set of life experiences than originally reflected in the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study, such as living in poverty or dangerous neighborhoods. The goal was to make these data widely available and provide training on how...
Blog Post
Trauma-Informed Care Toolkits
*Updated 10/09/2014 "Becoming trauma-informed is a process that involves striving towards a new way of understanding people and providing services and supports. This process involves a gradual integration of trauma concepts and trauma sensitive...
Blog Post
Trauma-informed Healthcare Approaches: A Guide for Primary Care
Our recently published book, Trauma-informed Healthcare Approaches was written to share basic principles of trauma-informed care and ACEs science with general medical practitioners and administrators. As the recent #METOO movement has demonstrated, interpersonal trauma is widespread. A growing literature has demonstrated the impact of traumatic experiences on mental, physical health and wellbeing. Trauma survivors commonly access healthcare but their histories and needs are commonly...
Blog Post
Two studies shed light on state legislators’ views on ACEs science and trauma policy
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...
Blog Post
Updated scoring guide for the Whole Child Assessment
Calculating a Child-ACE score is not necessary for using the Whole Child Assessment to screen and counsel families. However, because we know some providers for different reasons may want to calculate a score, we have simplified and updated the scoring guide at the bottom of the WCA forms and provided scoring instructions. No changes to any questions were made. https://lluch.org/health-professionals/whole-child-assessment-wca
Blog Post
We Need a Healing Movement
What if you had developed a cure for the most painful and costly public health problem in America, you had proven that it worked, and you were offering it for free, but could not reach those who need it most because no one wants to talk about the problem? Tragically, this is my reality and the truth about human nature. It is easier to suffer in silence than acknowledge the painful things that happen to us. Over 20 years ago, researchers at the Centers for Disease Control and Kaiser...
Blog Post
Webinar blog: Trauma-informed schools, a conversation with Jim Sporleder
“The most striking thing I heard was that when kids were highly escalated in the lower part of their brain, they physiologically can’t learn or take in new knowledge and problem-solve,” Sporleder recounted to participants in “Trauma-informed Schools: A conversation with Jim Sporleder”, an ACEs Connection webinar held on Nov. 19, 2018.
Blog Post
Webinar recording available: Making Meaningful Change—Addressing ACEs through Public Policy
On February 18, 2020, nationally recognized experts discussed policy and advocacy strategies on local, state, and national levels using evidence from studies they have conducted with legislators and the general public. Speakers shared advocacy and messaging "how to’s" including communicating the effects of structural racism as an ACE, fostering equity as an essential component of resilience, and leveraging the power of community-based ACE, trauma and resilience networks to inform policy.
Blog Post
What If I Told You?
What if I told you that I was a victim of child sex abuse? As a survivor of child sexual abuse , I have a clear understanding of the importance of addressing stigma and shame as it pertains to sexual abuse, sexual assault and rape. Victims, especially young children, often do not disclose sexual abuse. Those who are witnesses of child sexual abuse, or who are trusted by survivors enough that they confide in them, are often ill-equipped to handle the responsibility. And, many times, parents...
Blog Post
Why Mandating Mental Health Education in Schools is a Band-Aid on a Gaping Wound
Don’t get me wrong: of course I care deeply about the mental and physical health of children, including my own son’s. I don’t want students to suffer in silence and shame. But I am very concerned about just how this topic will be taught in schools.
Blog Post
Why Neighborhoods—and the Policies that Shape Them—Matter [rwjf.org]
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. [...