Krista Schroeder

A parent’s history of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) may influence their children’s weight, though prior research is limited and its results are inconsistent. This cross-sectional study examined the association between parent ACEs and children’s weight-related outcomes among children ( N = 824) at a Midwestern United States teaching hospital. The sample was analyzed by age subgroup, with weight-for-length being the weight-related outcome of interest for children i.e. , 7.7 months) for the <2-year subgroup and 8.6 ± 4.8 years for the ≥2 years subgroups. No relationships were found between parent ACEs and their children’s weight-related outcomes, regardless of whether ACEs were examined as a total score, 0–3 versus ≥4, or by ACE type. Findings suggest trauma-informed childhood obesity interventions should focus on children’s ACE histories rather than their parents’ ACE histories.

Health and quality of life vary across neighborhoods, showing that where people live shapes how they live. However, current quantitative geo-focused methods exploring neighborhood impacts on health do not fully capture how people experience places. Nurse researchers’ grounding in the nursing metaparadigm (person, environment, health, and nursing) positions them to lead inquiry into how social and physical neighborhood environments affect health. We propose a nursing-led Go-along Virtual INTERview (GVIv) approach that utilizes digital street-view platforms to conduct virtual interviews to investigate how neighborhoods shape lived experiences. Guided by the Political Ecology Framework to contextualize historical, cultural, and political-economic influences on health, and principles of community-engaged research, we used the GVIv approach to situate narratives of individuals with opioid use disorders in Chicago. This approach combines in-person and virtual semi-structured interviews to explore how built, social, economic, cultural, and temporal neighborhood factors shape health. Our pilot application of GVIv showed promise in eliciting rich contextual data, shifting researcher–participant dynamics, reducing resource expenditure, and enhancing safety. GVIv expands nursing research by offering a participant-centered, scalable approach to examine place-based health influences and inform equitable policy and intervention design.

This article introduces the concept of the trauma-informed neighborhood as a systems-level planning framework rooted in neuroscience, environmental psychology, and spatial justice. Drawing on principles of trauma-informed care and emerging public health research, the paper describes planning strategies that prioritize nervous system regulation, co-located services, inclusive public and greenspace design, cross-sector collaboration, and argues that planning is a health intervention. Through precedent analysis and conceptual modelling, the trauma-informed neighborhood is proposed as a design and policy intervention, with planners as central actors. The article concludes with policy recommendations and regulatory tools to leverage planning for community healing and long-term resilience.

Objective: Using a socio‐ecological perspective that includes consideration for the effects of the built environment, this study investigated the association between neighborhood‐level measures of childhood trauma, adult cancer prevention behaviors, and cancer mortality in Philadelphia. Methods: Cancer registry data and five neighborhood‐level risk factors, including three measures related to trauma and two indices related to adherence to cancer prevention guidelines, were utilized. Multivariate linear regression analyses were performed to assess how risk factors relate to variation in cancer mortality. Associations between each of the neighborhood risk factors and high cancer mortality were identified and visualized geospatially. Results: Trauma and adherence to cancer prevention guidelines together accounted for 50% of the variation in neighborhood cancer mortality in Philadelphia. Neighborhoods near each other were likely to have common prevalent risk factors, and the majority of neighborhoods with the highest cancer mortality rates were also high in trauma measures. Conclusions: Results expand upon prior research in this area to the neighborhood level, suggesting that neighborhoods with high cancer mortality are more likely to have high levels of trauma and low cancer prevention behaviors. Neighborhood‐level measures of trauma can be used to prioritize and tailor trauma‐informed cancer prevention efforts.

Background: The role of neighborhood factors in the association between adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and body mass index (BMI) has not been widely studied. A neighborhood ACEs index (NAI) captures neighborhood environment factors associated with ACE exposure. This study examined associations between BMI and an NAI among New York City (NYC) youth. An exploratory objective examined the NAI geographic distribution across NYC neighborhoods. Methods: Data for students attending NYC public general education schools in kindergarten-12th grade from 2006–2017 ( n = 1,753,867) were linked to 25 geospatial datasets capturing neighborhood characteristics for every census tract in NYC. Multivariable hierarchical linear regression tested associations between BMI and the NAI; analyses also were conducted by young (12 years) subgroups. In addition, NAI was mapped by census tract, and local Moran’s I identified clusters of high and low NAI neighborhoods. Results: Higher BMI was associated with higher NAI across all sex and age groups, with largest magnitude of associations for girls (medium NAI vs. low NAI: unstandardized β = 0.112 (SE 0.008), standardized β [effect size] = 0.097, p < 0.001; high NAI vs. low NAI: unstandardized β = 0.195 (SE 0.008), standardized β = 0.178, p < 0.001) and adolescents (medium NAI vs. low NAI: unstandardized β = 0.189 (SE 0.014), standardized β = 0.161, p < 0.001, high NAI vs. low NAI: unstandardized β = 0.364 (SE 0.015), standardized β = 0.334, p < 0.001 for adolescent girls; medium NAI vs. low NAI: unstandardized β = 0.122 (SE 0.014), standardized β = 0.095, p < 0.001, high NAI vs. low NAI: unstandardized β = 0.217 (SE 0.015), standardized β = 0.187, p < 0.001 for adolescent boys). Each borough of NYC included clusters of neighborhoods with higher and lower NAI exposure, although clusters varied in size and patterns of geographic dispersion across boroughs. Conclusions: A spatial index capturing neighborhood environment factors associated with ACE exposure is associated with higher BMI among NYC youth. Findings complement prior literature about relationships between neighborhood environment and obesity risk, existing research documenting ACE-obesity associations, and the potential for neighborhood factors to be a source of adversity. Collectively, evidence suggests that trauma-informed place-based obesity reduction efforts merit further exploration as potential means to interrupt ACE-obesity associations.

Overweight and obesity are common in school-age children. Policy, system, and environmental (PSE) approaches—which entail making upstream changes to a school's context—can be leveraged to reduce childhood obesity. Nurses can advance PSE approaches in schools to promote healthy living habits. This review examines the effect of nurse-involved PSE interventions globally to promote healthy nutrition and reduce obesity in schools. We conducted a literature search using multiple databases from 2010 to 2023 for nurse-involved studies that implemented interventions focused on PSE change related to promoting healthy nutrition or reducing obesity in school settings. Twenty interventions globally were included in the systematic review synthesis. Improvements in anthropometrics, health and nutrition knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs were observed. PSE interventions can be leveraged to promote healthy nutrition and reduce obesity in school settings. Nurses in varying roles are uniquely qualified to advocate for and implement school-based interventions focused on PSE change.

Background: The field of implementation science has advanced in recent years due to efforts from health equity experts who have worked to integrate issues of equity and social justice. Despite notable innovation, one area where guidance is lacking relates to the implementation process and how researchers can meaningfully engage providers/participants and participants in this work. Given that socially and economically marginalized populations are also likely to be affected by trauma, integrating guidance from the Trauma-Informed Care (TIC) field can enhance implementation with the overarching goal to improve equitable outcomes in health. Accordingly, the purpose of this commentary is to suggest ways that implementation science and TIC can be integrated to mitigate disparities and improve the science of implementation. Main text: We introduce the term Trauma-Informed Implementation Science (TIIS) with the goal of seeking alignment between these fields and acknowledging the wealth of guidance developed in TIC that can be incorporated into the process of implementation, especially when working with trauma-affected communities. To begin this narrative shift and build on our collective experiences as researchers and practitioners working in populations who have high prevalence of trauma, we propose extensions to the Consolidated Framework for Implementation Research (CFIR) implementation process domain that reflect the six central tenets of Trauma-Informed Care: 1) safety, 2) trustworthiness and transparency, 3) peer support, 4) collaboration and mutuality, 5) empowerment, voice, and choice, 6) cultural, historical, and gender issues. Specifically, we have aligned each of the implementation process constructs with one or more of the six tenets of TIC, provided recommendations for implementers/providers of case, and listed critical questions and considerations for researchers as they begin to apply tenets of TIC into their implementation work. Conclusions: We envision this commentary as the launching point for TIIS, with the goal that scholars with expertise in implementation science and TIC can deepen the integration of these two fields. Engagement with groups who have lived experience related to health inequities and trauma will be an important component of that process. With further development, TIIS holds promise to help reduce health disparities, especially among individuals and populations affected by trauma.

The rise of academic misconduct poses significant challenges to the integrity and credibility of scholarly research. Early-stage investigators (ESIs), particularly those representing marginalized groups, face unique pressures in navigating the “publish or perish” paradigm while establishing their careers. This commentary articulates strategies for cultivating research environments conducive to the responsible conduct of research (RCR) for ESIs. By establishing shared values, planning research meticulously, conducting research collaboratively, and reporting findings transparently, ESIs can foster a culture of prevention and accountability in research. Ultimately, navigating beyond traditional methodologies to support RCR necessitates a fundamental reimagining of academic culture, reconceptualizing productivity to prioritize quality over quantity, and to encompass “invisible” work often shouldered by investigators with marginalized identities. Addressing scientific misconduct challenges requires a whole-system approach, encompassing individual leadership, policy changes, and institutional accountability. By implementing concrete strategies and systemic reforms, academia can reaffirm its commitment to responsible research conduct and safeguard the integrity of scholarly endeavors.