NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County Opens New Advocacy, Care, and Engagement (ACE) Center to Provide Specialized, Trauma-Informed Care for Children at Risk of Abuse and Neglect
This specialized center will address child abuse and neglect through care, prevention, and education
Feb 09, 2026
NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County today announced the opening of the Advocacy, Care, and Engagement (ACE) Center, a new clinical practice dedicated to the evaluation, treatment, prevention, and education surrounding child abuse and neglect. Located in the E Building, 5th Floor, the ACE Center is currently providing care to children and families across Brooklyn.
The ACE Center provides specialized, evidence-based medical evaluations and a coordinated systems response for children who are suspected victims of physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect. By integrating medical, behavioral health, and social services, the Center aims to identify child maltreatment early, diagnose it accurately, and deliver compassionate, trauma-informed care to children and families during highly stressful situations.
In addition to direct patient care, the ACE Center is committed to education and prevention. The team will work closely with families, medical providers, and community organizations to strengthen understanding of how to recognize, respond to, and prevent child abuse and neglect. This approach aligns with New York State’s evolving culture around mandated reporting, including the New York State Office of Children and Family Services’ updated guidance emphasizing that families can be supported without automatically resorting to reporting.
“Early recognition of abuse and coordinated intervention can change the trajectory of a child’s life, which is why promoting child safety needs to be a public health priority,” said Lien Le, MD, Medical Director of the NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County ACE Center. “By supporting vulnerable children and families, we hope to pave a path of healing so that all kids have the opportunity to grow into happy and healthy adults.”
The ACE Center serves children from birth through age 17, with particular focus on:
- Children with suspected physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect
- Infants and non-verbal children presenting with unexplained or severe injuries
- Children exposed to domestic violence, caregiver substance use, or caregiver mental illness
- Medically complex or developmentally delayed children who are at increased vulnerability
- Children in foster care, kinship care, or unstable living environments
Through comprehensive and careful evaluations, the ACE Center works to reduce the risk of recurrent harm, avoid missed injuries, and prevent the misattribution of accidental injuries or medical conditions as abuse. Care is family-centered and coordinated, with strong connections to behavioral health, recovery services, and community-based supports.
“At the ACE Center, our focus is to provide both a response and prevention to concerns of child abuse and neglect,” said Angela Aris, LCSW, Social Worker and Child Protection Coordinator at NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County’s ACE Center. “Our work will support families by also supporting providers through consultation, training, and guidance on how to respond when risk factors are present, while building on the intrinsic strength and resilience families already have.”
The ACE Center is significant within NYC Health + Hospitals’ broader Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment initiative.
“The vision of the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment initiative at NYC Health + Hospitals is that every child grows up within safe, nurturing, and stable relationships and communities,” said Amy Pumo, LCSW, System Director of Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment at NYC Health + Hospitals. “The opening of the ACE Center at Kings County is an exciting advancement toward this goal. The children and families of Brooklyn deserve high-quality, trauma-informed prevention, evaluation, and treatment services, and the ACE Center will deliver just that.”
“In partnering with NYC Children’s Services, we identified a critical need in Brooklyn for additional services to support vulnerable children and families,” said Aaron J. Miller, MD, MPA, Assistant Vice President of Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment at NYC Health + Hospitals. “The opening of the ACE Center represents our commitment to our sister city agencies and to our communities by providing family-centered care so that every child can grow up safe and thrive.”
“New York City is committed to keeping children and youth safe and the new ACE Center in Brooklyn will help do that through care, prevention and education,” said Jess Dannhauser, Commissioner of the NYC Administration for Children’s Services. “We are grateful for the work of NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County and we are confident that this new center will have a lasting impact on today’s children and future generations.”
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MEDIA CONTACT: Alexis Davis, Chief Communication Officer, NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County
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About NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County
NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County is a 639-bed acute care teaching hospital located in Central Brooklyn. Among our highly specialized programs are a Level I Trauma Center, Pediatric Emergency Room, Level 3 Perinatal Center, Heart Health Center, Stroke Center, Sickle Cell Program, Behavioral Health Center, and Diabetes Education Center of Excellence. Many of our programs have received national recognition, including our cardiac, stroke, and diabetes services. The hospital offers a broad array of primary and specialty care, including practices in neuroscience, orthopedics, urology and cardiology. Annually, our ambulatory care practices see well over 500,000 visits and more than 150,000 visits in the Behavioral Health outpatient program, in addition to close to 23,000 inpatient discharges. NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County has played a major role in providing health care to vulnerable populations in Brooklyn since 1831 and is part of NYC Health + Hospitals, the largest public health care system in the nation. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org/kingscounty and stay connected on Facebook at facebook.com/KingsCountyHosp or X at @KingsCountyHosp.
About NYC Health + Hospitals
NYC Health + Hospitals is the largest municipal health care system in the nation, serving more than a million New Yorkers annually in more than 70 patient care locations across the city’s five boroughs. A robust network of outpatient, neighborhood-based primary and specialty care centers anchors care coordination with the system’s trauma centers, nursing homes, post-acute care centers, home care agency, and MetroPlusHealth —all supported by 11 essential hospitals. Its diverse workforce of more than 46,000 employees is uniquely focused on empowering New Yorkers, without exception, to live the healthiest life possible. For more information, visit www.nychealthandhospitals.org and stay connected on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
