Tagged With "Substance Misuse Prevention"
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12 Myths of the Science of ACEs
The two biggest myths about ACEs science are: MYTH #1 — That it’s just about the 10 ACEs in the ACE Study — the CDC-Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences Study . It’s about sooooo much more than that. MYTH #2 — And that it’s just about ACEs…adverse childhood experiences. These two myths are intertwined. The ACE Study issued the first of its 70+ publications in 1998, and for many people it was the lightning bolt, the grand “aha” moment, the unexpected doorway into a blazing new...
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A Public Health Approach to Preventing ACEs and Toxic Stress
Adverse Childhood Experiences and Toxic Stress are considered by many to be the #1 Public Health issue of our time. These experiences are often at the core of many other issues that we see in our communities such as interpersonal and community violence, substance use and misuse, suicide, and any number of chronic health issues such as diabetes, cancer, even Alzheimer’s. While it often seems like an overwhelming task, taking on public health crises is something that advocates in the U.S. have...
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Building Resilience - A Kansas PreventionTalKS Podcast
Building individual and community resilience is a cornerstone to most community coalition efforts - whether you are working to prevent substance use and abuse, addressing social and health disparities, or creating healthy environments for people to live, work, play, and pray. In this month's installment of their monthly Kansas Prevention TalKS podcast, our friends and partners at the Kansas Prevention Collaborative kindly invited me to talk more about what "resilience" means and what it...
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Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice (CTIPP) launches new grassroots initiative to engage and educate Congress
From Elizabeth Prewitt (ACEs Connection Staff) CTIPP (Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice) today announced the launch of the National Trauma Campaign , calling for federal action to prevent and address childhood trauma and build resilience through educating and engaging Congress. Its widely circulated communication invited people from around the country to join the new grassroots initiative. The campaign provides ways for everyone to get involved by joining the effort, becoming...
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Create the Context for Healthy Children and Families through Policies (EfC Goal #4)
We are going to wrap up our series on the Essentials for Childhood Framework with perhaps one of the toughest parts of the work – influencing policy. One of the best ways to assure that all of our great work doesn’t disappear when the winds change is to have it be embedded in our infrastructure, but it isn’t easy. The CDC suggests that there are two steps to inform policies that might support safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments. Identify and assess which policies may...
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ICYMI: The 12 Myths of the Science of ACEs
Just in case you missed it, Jane Stevens has posted a great new article and infographic explaining the 12 Myths of the Science of ACEs . Reading it, I felt like Jane has been following our team around lately (in a good way!). We have these discussions on a regular basis within the communities and organizations we visit - and we are betting that you do too! For us, Jane's article reinforces (and validates!) what we try to share with others and gives us additional language to do that in a...
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Kansas Communities Building ACEs Awareness (EfC Goal 1)
Before we can make progress on any issue that affects the health and well-being of those who live in our communities, people must be aware that an issue exists. In this installment, of our series dedicated to the CDC’s Essentials for Childhood Framework , we are going to highlight ways that some communities in Kansas are working toward achieving Goal #1: Raise awareness and commitment to promote safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments and prevent child abuse and neglect. In...
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New Resource: Measuring the Impact of TI Primary Care
As more and more organizations work toward trauma-informed, many struggle with how to measure the impact they are having on those they serve. In a new brief from the Center for Healthcare Strategies, leaders from the Montefiore Medical Group shares a proposed model to help organizations consider the critical question, “Is what we are doing working?” If you are an organization in Kansas, our Trauma-Informed Systems of Care team may be able to assist you in developing an infrastructure to...
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Positive Childhood Experiences offset ACEs: Q & A with Dr. Robert Sege about HOPE
Tufts University medical professor Dr. Robert Sege directs the Center for Community-Engaged Medicine and is nationally known for his research on effective health systems approaches that address social determinants of health. He is also the principal investigator for the HOPE framework (Healthy Outcomes from Positive Experiences).The HOPE framework is based on research that shows how positive childhood experiences can mitigate the effects of adverse childhood experiences. Sege and colleagues...
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Share your community or organization story!
As we build this site, we will share stories of the organizations and communities that we are honored to support on their journeys to become more trauma-informed and trauma-responsive. However, we know there are many out there we have yet to meet! We would love to hear what is happening in your community or organization to prevent and respond to toxic stress and create more resilient places to live, work, and play! Send us a blog post, resource to share, or just "Ask the Community" - we are...
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Supporting Schools in Becoming Models for Trauma-Informed Practice
School districts across the state (and country) are working to find ways to become more trauma-aware, trauma-sensitive, and trauma-responsive. Many have started the process by implementing a variety of programs and practices school-wide from Restorative Justice to Capturing Kids' Hearts . Others are making small changes, one classroom at a time. All of it is good work – and the best way to make it sustainable is to have a written plan developed by leaders at all levels within the school or...
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Higher Education’s Role in Promoting Racial Healing and the Power of Wonder (criticalimpact.com)
As protests erupt across the country and around the world demanding justice for George Floyd, a black man who was killed while in Minneapolis police custody, higher education must play a leadership role in addressing the issues at their center—racism and white supremacy. The devastating video that shows Mr. Floyd pleading for his life follows high-profile news reports of the killing of Breonna Taylor, a young black woman who was shot in bed by Memphis police engaged in a botched search for a...
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California reaches milestone with ACEs initiatives pulsing in all 58 counties. Next: All CA cities.
Karen Clemmer, the Northwest community facilitator with ACEs Connection, was already deeply interested in the CDC/Kaiser Permanente Adverse Childhood Experiences Study when she and a colleague from the Child Parent Institute were invited to lunch by ACEs Connection founder and publisher Jane Stevens in 2012. But that lunch meeting changed everything. Karen Clemmer “Jane helped us see a bigger world,” says Clemmer. “She came with a much wider lens. She didn’t look only at Sonoma County, she...
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Vanessa Lohf integrates ACEs science throughout Kansas communities, organizations and systems
A Kansas-licensed social worker, Vanessa Lohf was born and raised in Wichita, Kansas, where she still lives and works in public health by facilitating the Trauma-Informed Systems of Care Initiatives (TISC) team at the Wichita State University Community Engagement Institute. She also manages the Kansas ACEsConnection network , where she regularly posts about news and resources for communities and organizations throughout the state. Lohf says that Wichita is known as the “Aircraft Capital of...
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NCBH Resource: Trauma-Informed, Recovery-Oriented System of Care Toolkit
In August, the National Council on Behavioral Health released a new toolkit to help organizations create sustainable system-wide change that addresses trauma and fosters recovery for the people they serve. More from the NCBH: The opioid crisis has affected families across the nation. Approximately 10.3 million people live with an opioid use disorder and there were more than 46,000 opioid-related overdose deaths in 2018. We know that trauma is a significant driver of substance use disorders...
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3 Realms of ACEs - Updated!
ACEs Connection has updated our 3 Realms of ACEs Graphic to represent recent and pressing events. The 3 Realms of ACEs are Community, Household, and Environment. ACEs in these realms intertwine throughout people’s lives, and affect the viability of families, communities, organizations, and systems. Environment has been updated to include "Pandemic", as the entire world continues to survive through the COVID-19 crisis. The Community Realm has been updated to include "Discrimination" and "Food...
Calendar Event
Kansas Prevention Conference - Save the Dates!
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What Does Trauma-Informed Leadership Look Like in Practice?
Repost from PACES Connection Member, Shenandoah Chefalo (9/30/22): Trauma-informed leadership is crucial if you want to accomplish trauma-informed change in your organization. Here’s some expert advice on how you can become a trauma-informed leader. 1. Acknowledge that cultural change is just as important as technical change Our problem-solving brains often focus on technical change when we talk about organizational change. We ask, “What processes can we put in place to prevent this issue?”...
Calendar Event
6th Annual Kansas Prevention Conference
Calendar Event
Kansas Prevention Collaborative Conference
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Plans afoot to bring stability to PACEs Connection
To all of you, who, like me, love this website and want to see it and its communities flourish as we work to prevent and heal trauma; build resiliency: please know there is a move afoot by a small group of strategic partners to find a suitable host for PACEs Connection. More will be announced in the coming days. In the meantime, friends, we are figuring out email addresses and other communications logistics and opportunities. PEACE! Carey Sipp, former director of strategic partnerships ...
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EXCITING NEWS – PACEs Connection is BACK!
Former PACEs Connection employees Dana Brown (L) with Vincent Felitti, MD, co-author of the 1998 Adverse Childhood Experiences study, and Carey Sipp (R) in San Diego in January, 2024. The last few months have been quite challenging, but we pushed, persevered, and didn’t give up hope. The “we” is Carey Sipp and Dana Brown. We were long-time staff members of PACEs Connection determined to reinstate the website and the resources and information we provide to communities after the platform went...