Free webinar explores childhood trauma screening in Utah

Millcreek-area families can join a free online panel on childhood trauma Thursday, Nov. 5, listed on the Millcreek Journal events page.

The webinar, "Breaking the Cycle: ACEs, Trauma, and Utah's Path to Healthier Children," is presented in partnership with GenerationAll, a Utah-based organization working to reduce the generational impact of trauma, specifically sexual violence. The 75-minute session requires registration and is listed on Eventbrite.

Adverse Childhood Experiences, known as ACEs, include abuse, neglect and household challenges that can shape a child's long-term health. According to the event listing, ACE data show 65.7% of Utah adults have experienced at least one ACE. One in four have experienced three or more. ACEs are linked to nine of the 10 leading causes of death in the United States, the listing states.

Who's on the panel

Three experts will lead the discussion:

Dr. R. Neal Davis, associate chief medical officer for Intermountain Children's Health in the Canyons Region
Holly Willard, a licensed clinical social worker who founded Grandview Family Counseling and the nonprofit Grandview for Good
Dr. Brooks Keeshin, a child psychiatrist and child abuse pediatrician at the Center for Safe and Healthy Families at Intermountain Primary Children's Hospital

Dr. Susan R. Madsen, a professor of leadership in extension at Utah State University and founding director of the Utah Women & Leadership Project, will moderate.

Healing Generations and HAR0130

After the panel, Sage Hancock, co-founder and executive director of GenerationAll, will introduce the Healing Generations initiative. According to GenerationAll, it is the first statewide ACE screening pilot of its kind.

GenerationAll says it worked with partners in 2026 to pass HAR0130, which provides funding for validated trauma screens at pediatrician visits across the state. The organization says it is finalizing the last stages before the program begins. The event listing describes HAR0130 as a legislative effort to reimburse validated trauma screenings so children can receive support before a crisis occurs.

GenerationAll frames the stakes this way: "The question is not whether Utah pays for childhood trauma — the question is whether we pay for it early through prevention, or later through healthcare, incarceration, child welfare, and crisis services."