Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood (0-17 years). Some examples of ACEs include experiencing or witnessing violence, abuse, or neglect. Aspects of a child's environment that can undermine their sense of safety, stability, or bonding (such as growing up in a household with substance misuse, mental health problems, or instability) can also contribute to ACEs. The ongoing effects of these events can negatively impact physical, emotional, mental, and behavioral health.
Georgia PACE:D2A analyzes risk factors, protective factors, and social determinants of health related to ACEs. Measuring and tracking this data supports the prevention of ACEs in Georgia.
Georgia PACE:D2A analyzes protective factor data that measure things like positive relationships at school, prosocial interactions with teachers, positive school environments, feelings of belonging, and more.
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Georgia by the Numbers
In 2021
Georgia ranked 38th out of 50 states for child well-being.
18% of Georgians
Adults with 4+ ACEs
are more likely to...
have difficulties due to a physical, emotional, or mental condition.
have been diagnosed with depression.
PACE:D2A
PACE:D2A
Georgia PACE:D2A seeks to share data about the shared risk and protective factors for child abuse, neglect, and other detrimental adverse events in a child's life in order to help people across the state reduce risk factors and increase protective factors.
The program connects government and nonprofit agencies, uplifting their lifechanging work by providing data, monitoring, and technical assistance to prevent these adverse events before they happen.
EXAMPLE
PACE:D2A might connect people working at the mayor's office in a small town with experts in ACEs who can provide actionable data related to local work preventing childhood adversity.
Georgia PACE:D2A seeks to share data about the shared risk and protective factors for child abuse, neglect, and other detrimental adverse events in a child's life in order to help people across the state reduce risk factors and increase protective factors.
The program connects government and nonprofit agencies, uplifting their lifechanging work by providing data, monitoring, and technical assistance to prevent these adverse events before they happen.
EXAMPLE
PACE:D2A might connect people working at the mayor's office in a small town with experts in ACEs who can provide actionable data related to local work preventing childhood adversity.
The program provides data to empower the implementation of the recently developed Georgia Child Abuse and Neglect Prevention Plan (CANPP) as well as local plans that were developed for each of the Georgia Division of Family and Children Service regions.
Jennifer Stein
PCA Georgia
"...we are able to work together as pieces of the puzzle."
Listen to the full quote by pressing play below.
PACE:D2A empowers partner organizations to show that ACEs are complex societal problems with various causes that require multifaceted responses.
With support from PACE:D2A, partner organizations find a balance between community wisdom and hard data. This, in turn, helps organizations to achieve their goals to protect children in Georgia.
Some key partnerships include:
The Georgia Essentials for Childhood (EfC) Committee
Part of a comprehensive effort for child abuse and neglect prevention across several states, the Georgia EfC employs the Essentials for Childhood framework developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). They are also charged with overseeing the CANPP and implementing CANPP plans.
The Injury Prevention Research Center at Emory (IPRCE)
IPRCE developed the data collection system utilized by EfC and offers a data literacy training for regions implementing their CANPP.
IPRCE provides fact sheets on data and strategies related to the CANPP as well as associated individual technical assistance. They also attend every regional meeting to supply necessary and specific data points.
The Georgia Department of Public Health Injury Prevention Program
This work is funded by the Georgia Department of Public Health through a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences: Data to Action (CDC-RFA-CE20-2006)
Additional Partners Include:
- Georgia Division of Family and Children Services
- Preventing Child Abuse Georgia
- Banyan Communications
- Advantage Consulting
- DPH Epi
The COVID-19 Pandemic
Georgia PACE:D2A, like so many other programs, has faced hurdles posed by the COVID-19 pandemic -- including delays in some data collection and hiring staff to support the project.
PACE:D2A staff were able to find opportunities inside some of these challenges.
For example, regional data has been used to determine areas in most immediate need.
Scholarships were awarded to providers so that they could be trained in Triple P - Positive Parenting Program.
Lisa Dawson
Program Director,
Georgia Department of Public Health
“…[connecting people] where they can really make a difference, is a huge part of our work…”
Listen to the full quote by pressing play below.
Moving Forward
PACE:D2A will continue to assess current methods used to prevent childhood adversity, noting gaps or issues in prevention, and using funding to address those shortcomings through partnerships and original work.
For example, ‘train the trainer' scholarships were paid for by PACE:D2A and organized by Prevent Child Abuse Georgia.
Each trainer received the materials needed for them to host conversations with parents and caregivers over the next year. These trainers will reach individuals across Georgia, massively magnifying the impact of the Triple P program.
By the end of this funding cycle, Georgia PACE:D2A will have published a report on the state of ACEs in Georgia.
This report will collect comprehensive information in a single location and will be accessible to the public so that organizations can utilize the data to achieve their goals.
The report will be written for a general audience, providing accessible data and guidance on how to use it.
This project was made possible by the CDC-RFA-OT18-1802 Cooperative Agreement, from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.