Grantee Publications

Published work by ACEs Aware grantees across California

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ACEs Aware grantees across the state are producing practice papers with promising practices and case studies from providers and communities implementing ACE screening and trauma-informed systems of care.

Working together, we can advance and promote these informed and inspired approaches and leverage them in service of the goal of unlocking the potential of Californians for generations to come. Explore practice papers below.

Equity and Adverse Childhood Experience Screenings

Grantee: Children’s Cause Orange County on behalf of Early Childhood OC. With participating content experts Drs. Miguel Gallardo, Karen Hill, and Marta M. Shinn

Early Childhood OC collaborated with the Multi-Ethnic Collaborative of Community Agencies (MECCA) and Children’s Cause Orange County to develop an understanding of the perspective of community providers who are, and will be, implementing ACE screening tools. Additional insight was provided by content experts with knowledge related to the intersectionality between ACE screenings and structural racism. 

Integrating Adverse Childhood Experiences Screening into Clinical Practice: Insights from California Practice

Grantee: Hannah Gears and Meryl Schulman, Center for Health Care Strategies

To support providers in adopting ACE screening, the Center for Health Care Strategies (CHCS) conducted interviews with 14 Medi-Cal providers, including pediatricians, family medicine providers, behavioral health clinicians, and a certified nurse midwife, from 12 clinics in regions in California. Although the report focuses on California perspectives, the insights can inform health care organizations and providers across the country seeking to adopt an effective ACE screening approach. 

Screening Adolescents for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): Addressing the Unique Needs of Immigrant Youth

Grantee: UCSF Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies

This practice paper examines ACEs and ACE screening with immigrant youth, including qualitative research conducted with adolescent health providers and adolescents to understand their perspectives on this topic, and offers recommendations for adolescent health providers to effectively implement ACE screening with immigrant youth in primary care settings. This paper is a companion document to the authors’ practice paper entitled Screening Adolescents for Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs): Incorporating Resilience and Youth Development.

END USER SUBLICENSE AGREEMENT

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    1. The PEARLS Tool. The PEARLS tool is a unique tool that assess for both Adverse Childhood Experiences (“ACEs”) such as abuse, neglect, and household challenges, and related events, such as discrimination, food insecurity, and community violence, thought to be risk factors for toxic stress. The PEARLS tool was made in the course of research under the auspices of the Children’s Hospital Research Center at Oakland (“BCHO”) and the University of California, San Francisco. BCHO has licensed the PEARLS tool to DHCS and provided DHCS with the right to sublicense the PEARLS tool.
    2. Sublicensee Attestation. By agreeing to this Agreement, You attest that You are a provider of health care services to Medi-Cal beneficiaries, a Medi-Cal Managed Care Plan, a Medi-Cal beneficiary, a parent or guardian of a Medi-Cal beneficiary, or an Electronic Health Records (“EHR”) vendor.
    3. The Sublicense. Subject to the terms of this agreement, DHCS hereby grants to Sublicensee a non-exclusive, royalty-free, non-assignable, non-transferable sublicense (the “Sublicense”) to the PEARLS tool. Under the Sublicense, Sublicensee may use the PEARLS tool as directed, and may save, download, print, copy, reproduce, or distribute the PEARLS tool to facilitate such use.
    4. Use in a Remote Patient Portal. The PEARLS tool was developed as a screener of risk for toxic stress and has been tested for safe, reliable screening when used during in-person (i.e., synchronous) visits. The questions and responses of the PEARLS tool may be administered using the EHR as structured data fields to facilitate record and follow-up. Because the PEARLS tool was never studied under asynchronous screening formats, DHCS cannot provide recommendations regarding its use in a remote patient portal. This includes information around safety and adequate windows of response. Sublicensee acknowledges that DHCS is not responsible for providing any recommendations regarding the use of the PEARLS tool in a remote patient portal, and that DHCS is not responsible for overseeing implementation and use of the PEARLS tool in a remote patient setting. This includes information around safety and adequate windows of response.
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      1. The relationship between DHCS and Sublicensee established by this Agreement is that of independent contractors. No joint venture or partnership is established by this Agreement. Neither party is the agent, broker, partner, employee, or legal representative of the other for any purpose.
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