The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #62851

Jonathan H. Drewry, MPH, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/National Center for Environmental Health/ Environmental Health Services Branch, 4770 Buford Hwy, NE, Atlanta, GA 30341, (770) 488-7715, bzd9@cdc.gov and John Sarisky, MPH, RS, EHSB, NCEH, CDC, 4770 Buford HWY NE, MS F-28, Atlanta, GA 30341-3717.

For success in environmental public health problem solving, community members must play a role in the identification and definition of local environmental concerns. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is currently working with eight communities (Alexandria, VA; Blount County, TN; San Juan Basin, CO; Mahoning County, OH; Multnomah County, OR; Muskegon County, MI; Polk County, FL; and Rock County, WI) that are using the Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health (PACE EH) framework as a guidance tool for conducting community environmental health assessments. PACE EH is an innovative 13-step assessment tool that allows communities to identify environmental public health issues, rank local environmental health concerns, and set priorities according to local needs. This presentation will summarize experiences of the eight communities that are currently implementing PACE EH with support from local health agencies. Examples of these experiences include community organizational development (one site used community health activists, community public health facilitators, and a regional director to organize the process), assembly of an environmental health team (one site used a health alliance to appoint an environmental health steering committee), definition of project goals and objectives (establishment of community support for environmental health projects), and methods for accurately assessing community environmental public health issues of concern (focus groups and health surveys). The lessons learned from these eight communities will benefit environmental public health practitioners, community health leaders, and health planners in better understanding the initial steps of a community environmental health assessment.

Learning Objectives:

• Participants will understand the methods that are currently available to form stong community collaborations with a focus upon environmental health issues
• Participants will recognize the utility of the PACE EH community environmental health assessment tool in the formation of community collaborations, setting community goals and objectives, and in identifying environmental health problems of concern.
• Participants will understand the initial six steps of the PACE EH assessment process and the different tools used by the eight commmunities involved.

Keywords: Environmental Health, Community-Based Partnership

Related Web page: www.cdc.gov/nceh/ehs/default.htm

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.