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By Erin Allday, San Francisco Chronicle, January 5, 2020 A screening tool developed by Bay Area pediatricians to identify adverse childhood experiences, ranging from homelessness and food insecurity to physical and sexual abuse, will now help doctors statewide address trauma affecting patients’ health. The California Department of Health Care Services approved the tool — called PEARLS, for Pediatric ACEs and Related Life-Events Screener — last month. As of Jan. 1, its use is covered by...

By Elissa S. Epel, The American Journal of Psychiatry, January 1, 2020 There has been growing scientific interest in telomere biology over the 35 years since its fundamental mechanisms were deciphered. Telomeres, the finely regulated protective caps at the tips of our chromosomes, play a critical role in aging, from yeast to humans. Telomeres are made of long, winding strands of repeat sequences of noncoding DNA, covered with protective proteins. Although their regulation and functions are...

What does it mean to have a healthcare system that serves everybody? And what can physicians do to address the ways in which societal challenges impact our diagnoses? Rupa Marya, M.D., is exploring these concepts through numerous projects aimed at researching our current medical climate and collaborating with marginalized populations to make healthcare more effective and compassionate. Following is a transcript from Marya’s 2018 Bioneers keynote presentation, in which she discusses her...

By UCSF Continuing Medical Education, December 12, 2019 This is the fourth annual conference here in the Bay Area focusing on maternal mental health and well-being, with speakers from throughout the area covering important topics that will improve the care our patients are receiving. We welcome anyone with a personal or professional interest in maternal mental health. Participants will: Review the state of the current opioid crisis in this country and learn about tools to help identity...

In my previous post , I shared my personal journey that led to my discovery of the science of childhood adversities and their potential implication for making a difference in global health. In the process of doing so, my team started mapping who is doing ACEs-related work at our large, multidisciplinary university. Knowing that our UCSF community has been at the forefront of the most challenging public health problems of our time, such as HV, cardiovascular diseases, and cancer, I was not...

An ACEs Connection webinar co-sponsored with 4 CA In 2017, California became the first state in the country to pass a law supporting universal screening for adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) in the 5.3 million children in the state’s Medicaid program. As clinicians around California await the state’s announcement of what this new policy will entail, many are wondering what it takes to integrate ACEs science in a pediatric practice. Meet Drs. Deirdre Bernard-Pearl, R.J. Gillespie and...

Free half-day summit on the impact of incarceration on mental health, at Berkeley College, on Wednesday October 16. Register using the link provided.

Picture yourself in a massive San Francisco hotel ballroom, surrounded by a thousand health professionals with a shared passion for changing the landscape of health using a seemingly unlikely lever: reducing adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). You haven’t read much about ACEs, but what you are learning is revelatory. You hear that childhood traumatic events drastically affect the human mind and body – not just immediately after the traumatic event, but into and through adulthood. You learn...

By Molly Walker, Medpage Today, September 30, 2019 Military sexual trauma was associated with a wide range of mental health diagnoses, including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and suicidal ideation in older female veterans, a researcher said here. Female veterans, ages ≥55, who screened positive for military sexual trauma had a more than seven-fold increased odds of PTSD (OR 7.25, 95% CI 6.84-7.68), and more than two-fold higher odds of depression (OR 2.39, 95% CI...

Hi all- With the beautiful new changes to our site, please take a moment to review the updated "How-Tos" below . If you can't find what you need or are having issues with the site please let me know. ( Gail ) JOIN How-To: Join ACEs Connection How-To: Join ACEs Connection Groups INVITE How-To: Invite Others to Join ACEs Connection How-To: Invite Others to Join an ACEs Connection Group SIGN IN & UPDATE PROFILE How-To: Sign In to ACEs Connection How-To: Update Your...