Violence Prevention Technical Assistance Center
Violence is a widespread public health problem that occurs in many forms, including child abuse and neglect, youth violence, sexual violence, and intimate partner violence. Fortunately, decades of research and practice have proven that violence is preventable.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) launched the Violence Prevention Technical Assistance Center (VPTAC), through a contract with AIR, to serve as a training and technical assistance hub for organizations that receive funding from CDC’s Division of Violence Prevention.
VPTAC focuses on the prevention of child maltreatment and other adverse childhood experiences; youth violence; intimate partner violence, including teen dating violence; and sexual violence. VPTAC’s training and technical assistance (TTA) is grounded in the following principles: (a) building the capacity of recipients to create societal- and community-level impact; (b) focusing on factors that cut across multiple forms of violence; and (c) promoting health equity by advancing economic, gender, and race equity.
All Prevention Practice and Translation Branch (PPTB)-funded recipients receive TTA from VPTAC; currently, this consists of 86 recipients in state and local health departments, coalitions, and other organizations. VPTAC serves as a hub, delivering and coordinating TTA delivery with three other organizations funded by PPTB. VPTAC’s TTA builds recipients’ capacity to meet program-specific requirements and realize the vision of the Division of Violence Prevention for comprehensive, crosscutting approaches.
VPTAC’s TTA is data informed and grounded in the best available evidence. VPTAC conducts an annual needs assessment (e.g., key informant interviews, document review) to inform TTA planning. To ensure that TTA goals and objectives are met, VPTAC monitors and evaluates TTA delivery; findings are used for continuous quality improvement. Data used in these quality improvement cycles come from VPTAC’s TTA tracker, recipient satisfaction surveys, conversations with TTA recipients, annual surveys and focus group findings, and extant data collected from TTA recipients.
Example TTA topics addressed with PPTB-funded recipients have included developing partnerships, conducting needs assessments, writing and enhancing strategic plans, addressing social determinants of health, evaluating prevention activities, and implementing equitable policies at both the state and local levels.
