Find the Words

Explore video and audio recordings, talking points, and a How-To Guide to APHA’s Bridging Framework—a narrative structure that can help you make a difference.

Collective Messaging Framework

Think of the collective messaging framework as a guide for broadening better understanding of the connection between ACEs, overdose and suicide. It is designed to communicate the need to break down silos to address these three health issues more effectively. As such, the collective messaging framework:

  1. Provides messages about ACEs, overdose and suicide that strengthen the work of experts in each of these individual issues.
  2. Advances an overarching narrative that ACEs, overdose and suicide are urgent, related and preventable public health challenges and are rooted in public health inequities.
  3. Empowers subject matter experts to inform stakeholder decisions toward effective, prevention-focused public health policies, approaches and funding.

Core Message

Adverse childhood experiences, overdose and suicide are urgent and related public health challenges. While these challenges have consequences for all of us, some communities are more affected than others due to systemic barriers, like a lack of resources or opportunities.

These challenges are preventable if we adopt a coordinated and equitable approach that focuses on addressing today’s crises while preventing tomorrow’s.

Urgent

Exposure to ACEs, overdose and suicide are urgent public health challenges confronting every community in the country. These challenges contribute to shortened life span, lower quality of life, rising health care costs, lost economic productivity and strain on our social service system that affect all of us. This urgency is heightened by trauma passed down from one generation to another and by lack of public investment in some communities. This makes existing health challenges worse and makes it harder to seek preventive or lifesaving resources.

Related

These challenges are related because exposure to ACEs is associated with increased risk of overdose and suicide later in life. And for children, because losing a loved one to suicide or overdose is an ACE, future overdose or suicide risk grows. As such, ACEs, overdose and suicide are each associated with the other, and the impact can last across generations. People who are affected by substance use and suicide early in life are also disproportionately affected by systems inequities, like structural racism. This leads to health inequities, or the uneven distribution of social and economic resources that impact an individual’s health.

Preventable

Fortunately, these three crises are preventable if we take a comprehensive public health approach that addresses the complex and often related challenges that impact health disparities. By building on community strengths—and focusing not just on treatment but also on awareness building and prevention strategies that fit the community—we can meet the immediate needs of those already affected today while preventing future risk and adverse health outcomes tomorrow.

Approach

We need a coordinated approach to ensure equity in policies, programs and services that build on the strengths of individuals, families and communities while reducing the disparities that increase risk for some more than others. This can happen when we:

  • Increase understanding of the causes and impact, and better coordinate across treatment and prevention fields.
  • Engage a broad movement of champions and change agents in communities.
  • Invest in research and evaluation to better understand what works, why and for whom.
  • Implement successful treatment and prevention strategies that are adapted for specific cultural contexts.
Download FAQs Download Core Messaging Framework PDF

How to Use the Bridging Framework

This messaging framework helps you create talking points to bridge to the collective message framework from more topic-specific messaging. It also helps you build out talking points from this collective message framework to focus on your particular topic in more depth. Explore some examples of this below.

Bridge with arrow above pointing right

Bridging TO the Collective Messaging Framework

(after having shared talking points based on one of the three topics)

“Today, we’ve been talking about [ACEs/overdose/suicide], and I’m glad we’ve had the chance to focus on it specifically. I’d also like to take this opportunity to talk about the bigger picture since we believe more progress can be made on [ACEs/overdose/suicide] by thinking about it holistically.”

(proceed with talking points adapted from the collective message framework)

Bridging FROM the Collective Messaging Framework

(after having shared talking points based on the collective message framework)

“I hope this context has helped explain why we focus on addressing all three of these issues together. Now, I’d like to focus a bit more specifically on [ACEs/overdose/suicide] and what we can do today to address it more effectively.”

(proceed with issue-specific talking points)

Bridge with arrow above pointing left

Examples in Practice

How Common are ACEs?

The Strengths of Shared Narratives to Change Policies

During APHA's Annual Meeting, Jonah Cunningham, Government Relations Manager with Trust for America's Health (TFAH), discusses how using the shared messaging strategy to communicate with key stakeholders provides an opportunity to shift away from only focusing on ACEs, overdose, and suicide as separate issues. Instead, elevating their connection can help public health to reimagine how to address these issues as a collective through programs, funding, and partnerships.

Watch Video

Generate Your Talking Points

Use the tool below to generate basic talking points to use in your work. Choose the direction you want to use (to the messaging framework or from the messaging framework) and the particular topic area you want to focus on, then click “generate” to see your talking points.

Direction to/from Framework

Individual Topic Area

Talking Points Based on Selections:

See text-only version and sources

We know that ACEs can impact the way a child’s brain develops and functions and have serious impacts on lifelong health and opportunities. ACEs are associated with at least five of the 10 leading causes of death, including a significant relationship to future risk of attempted suicide.1,2,3  ACEs are also associated with younger opioid initiation, injection drug use, misuse, and overdose.3  Additionally, for children, losing a loved one to suicide or overdose are ACEs, and these experiences, in turn, increase the risk of future overdose or suicide.4  By understanding and addressing these urgent, related, and preventable issues in the context of each other, we can prevent exposure and harm to future generations.

Opioid use disorder and opioid misuse are devastating, wide-ranging public health issues facing every community in the nation. These issues are also closely related to two other pressing health concerns: adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, and suicide. ACEs are potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood, and such experiences are associated with younger opioid initiation, injection drug use, lifetime opioid misuse, and overdose.1  Opioid use disorder is associated with a significant increase in suicidal ideation, and opioid misuse is closely associated with suicide planning and attempts.5  Additionally, for children, losing a loved one to suicide or overdose are ACEs, and these experiences, in turn, increase the risk of future overdose or suicide.2  By understanding and addressing these urgent, related, and preventable issues in the context of each other, we can prevent exposure and harm to future generations.

We know that suicide is a significant, growing problem in the United States. It is also closely linked to two other serious public health concerns: adverse childhood experiences, or ACEs, and overdose. ACEs are potentially traumatic events that occur in childhood. ACEs can change the way a child’s brain develops and functions and are associated with at least five of the 10 leading causes of death, including the future risk of attempted suicide.1,2,6  ACEs are also associated with younger opioid initiation, injection drug use, lifetime opioid misuse, and overdose.3  Opioid use disorder is associated with a significant increase in suicidal ideation, and opioid misuse is closely associated with suicide planning and attempts.5 Additionally, for children, losing a loved one to suicide or overdose are ACEs, and these experiences, in turn, increase the risk of future overdose or suicide.4 By understanding and addressing these urgent, related, and preventable issues in the context of each other, we can prevent exposure and harm to future generations.

Understanding the context of the interrelation between adverse childhood experiences, overdose, and suicide can help us prevent exposure and harm to future generations, which is why the APHA and CDC are focused on addressing these three issues together. Now, I’d like to focus more specifically on ACEs and what we can do today to help children and adults thrive tomorrow.

(proceed with talking points related to ACEs)

Understanding the context of the interrelation between adverse childhood experiences, overdose, and suicide can help us prevent exposure and harm to future generations, which is why APHA and CDC are focused on addressing these three issues together. Now, I’d like to focus more specifically on preventing overdose and other opioid-related harms.

(proceed with talking points related to overdose prevention)

Understanding the context of the interrelation between adverse childhood experiences, overdose, and suicide can help us prevent exposure and harm to future generations, which is why APHA and CDC are focused on addressing these three issues together. Now, I’d like to focus more specifically on preventing suicide.

(proceed with talking points related to suicide prevention)

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