Applying universal ACEs screening in the pediatric clinic.

Center for Youth Wellness Clinical Services

• ADVERSE CHILDHOOD EXPERIENCES QUESTIONNAIRE (ACE-Q)

  We developed an ACEs screening questionnaire and accompanying user guide as an ACEs screening tool and protocol for pediatric care providers to administer and interpret the screening, as well as discuss treatment options with children and their caregivers. If you are a health care professional interested in using the CYW ACE-Q, click here.

• CARE COORDINATION

  Our care coordinators are embedded in the pediatric clinic and offer education to children, youth and caregivers about the impacts of ACEs and toxic stress on health. They can provide brief interventions, information and referral resources, and coordinate care among internal and external providers for families receiving multidisciplinary treatment.

• MULTIDISCIPLINARY TREATMENT

  Child, adolescent, and young adult patients of BCHC who have been exposed to four or more ACEs, or who have one to three ACEs plus significant symptoms, are referred for multidisciplinary treatment. Families receive care coordination services and may also receive a combination of psychotherapy, psychiatric care, and biofeedback based on their individualized care plan.

  • PSYCHOTHERAPY

    We provide a variety of evidence-supported treatments and promising practices that share core principles of culturally competent, trauma-informed therapy that are appropriate for children and families from diverse cultural backgrounds. These include Child Parent Psychotherapy (CPP), Infant Parent Psychotherapy (IPP), Trauma Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT), Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT), and Cue-Centered Therapy.

  • PSYCHIATRY

    Psychiatrists provide medication evaluations of children and caregivers, psychotropic medication management, and clinical consultation to the multidisciplinary team.

  • BIOFEEDBACK (PERIPHERAL AND NEUROFEEDBACK)

    These services build awareness and control over body processes such as muscle tension, blood pressure, and heart rate to help patients recognize and better regulate their fight or flight response. Neurofeedback is a form of biofeedback in which individuals learn to regulate their neurological function, or brainwave activity. With both bio- and neurofeedback, our main objective is to raise the brain’s threshold to toxic stress by increasing resiliency, flexibility, and stability.