The Ethical Argument for Implementing Screening For Adverse Childhood Experiences in the Care of Adult Patients

Childhood trauma greatly impacts the lives of patients and their future health outcomes. Since the discovery of the utility of the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) screening tool in the 1990s, many providers have attempted to screen and intervene on these past experiences of trauma with mixed results. ACEs have an outsized impact on adult health. There is considerable literature documenting the changing state of screening for ACEs in adult populations, and the compelling rationales for doing so. There are also a number of interventions available currently, but providers face challenges to use them. Ethical considerations and issues with the current state of screening for ACEs exist, due to some of these challenges and differential availability of interventions between populations. Here, I use the principles of urban bioethics to explain the ethical obligation of screening for ACEs despite these challenges and to dispute previous discussions on this topic. This article will show that there are general strategies that providers can take to implement ACEs screening in an ethical manner and specifically discusses trauma-informed care’s utility to help achieve these strategies. Through this discussion, I hope to encourage providers to reconsider ACEs screening and give them strategies to do so.

Grantor dc:publisher

Temple University. Libraries

Year dc:date.issued

2019

Author dc:creator

• Halsey, Brenton Shaw

Advisor dc:contributor.advisor

• Strand, Nicolle K.

• Medical ethics
• Adverse childhood experiences
• Medical screening
• Trauma
• Urban bioethics

Statement dc:rights

• IN COPYRIGHT- This Rights Statement can be used for an Item that is in copyright. Using this statement implies that the organization making this Item available has determined that the Item is in copyright and either is the rights-holder, has obtained permission from the rights-holder(s) to make their Work(s) available, or makes the Item available under an exception or limitation to copyright (including Fair Use) that entitles it to make the Item available.

Licence dc:rights.uri

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

Language dc:language.iso

eng

Handle dc:identifier.uri

http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12613/2970

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:scholarshare.temple.edu:20.500.12613/2970