Georgia: PACE:D2A

In Georgia, funding from CDC's Preventing Adverse Childhood Experiences: Data to Action (PACE:D2A) program helps address and prevent adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), build resilient communities, improve community environments, and reduce and destigmatize trauma.

Families and children don't have access to the resources and services that they need to prevent ACEs from happening.

It's a lack of communal and societal level support and a lack of access to those things when they do exist. I believe when families and children are provided with resources and services, the individual ACEs can be lessened or prevented full stop.

— Grace Morrow, PACE:D2A Program Manager, Georgia Department of Public Health

3d outline of Georgia

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 can also contribute to ACEs. The ongoing effects of these events can negatively impact physical, emotional, mental, and behavioral health.

The Injury Prevention Program at the Georgia Department of Public Health leads Georgia PACE:D2A. 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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PACE:D2A   |    SUCCESSES   |    PARTNERSHIPS   |    OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLENGES   |    VISION FOR THE FUTURE

PACE:D2A

PACE:D2A

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Georgia PACE:D2A seeks to share data about the shared risk and protective factors for child abuse and neglect in order to help reduce ACEs and increase Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs).

The program uplifts the work of nonprofit and government agencies by connecting them to data and technical assistance to prevent ACEs from happening in the first place.

EXAMPLE Activity

PACE:D2A connects people working at a mayor's office with experts in ACEs who provide data and technical assistance tailored to the local community.

Georgia PACE:D2A seeks to share data about the shared risk and protective factors for child abuse and neglect in order to help reduce ACEs and increase Positive Childhood Experiences (PCEs).

The program uplifts the work of nonprofit and government agencies by connecting them to data and technical assistance to prevent ACEs from happening in the first place.

EXAMPLE Activity

PACE:D2A connects people working at a mayor's office with experts in ACEs who provide data and technical assistance tailored to the local community.

georgia map

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.

Successes

Jennifer Stein
Prevent Child Abuse Georgia

"...we are able to work together as pieces of the puzzle."

Listen to the full quote by pressing play below.

Funding has allowed Georgia PACE:D2A to:

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    Develop and localize ACEs prevention strategies.

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    Analyze existing data and share the results on a public website.

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    Create meaningful partnerships.

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    Assist with implementing the Child Abuse Prevention Plan (CANPP).

Surveillance activities have included:

Utilizing the Georgia Student Health Survey to identify ACEs data, and risk and protective factor data for youth across Georgia.

Building relationships to access new sources for more timely information, such as emergency room discharge data.

Prevention strategies and approaches include:

Ensuring a strong start for children by analyzing ACEs risk and protective factor data by location and the prevalence of evidence-based programs for children and families.

Promoting social norms that protect against violence and adversity through public education campaigns such as Peach Parenting.

Partnerships

PACE:D2A has a focus on data, but without it's partners, that data is just numbers.

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.

Prevent Child Abuse (PCA) Georgia

PCA Georgia provides statewide direction to build safe, stable, nurturing relationships and environments to prevent child abuse and neglect. They are one of three backbone organizations that provide administrative and organizational support to EfC. PCA Georgia conducts evaluations for EfC activities, assists with project implementation and development, and disseminates PACE: D2A data products.

Additional Partners Include:

  • Georgia Division of Family and Children Services
  • Banyan Communications
  • Advantage Consulting
  • Department of Public Health Chronic Disease, Health Behaviors and Injury Epidemiology Section

Opportunities and Challenges

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.

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Scholarships were awarded to providers so that they could be trained in Triple P - Positive Parenting Program.

Vision for the Future

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.

Family speaking with a counselor

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.

Children playing in a fountain

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.

Together, we can lessen the effects of ACEs and prevent them before they happen.