Recorded presentation

W. Randolph Daley, DVM, MPH¹, Judith R. Qualters, PhD², Vickie Boothe¹, Leslie A. Todorov, MPH³, and Amanda Sue Niskar, DrPH, RN⁴. (1) National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Mailstop E-19, 1600 Clifton Rd, Atlanta, GA 30333, 404-498-1347, wdaley@cdc.gov, (2) Environmental Health Tracking Branch, DEHHE/NCEH/CDC, 1600 Clifton Rd, NE, MS-E19, Atlanta, GA 30333, (3) Environmental Public Health Tracking Branch, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd., MS E-19, Atlanta, GA 30333, (4) National Center for Environmental Health/ATSDR, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Environmental Public Health Tracking Program, 1600 Clifton Rd, MS E19, Atlanta, GA 30333

Currently, few information systems exist to track exposures and health effects that may be related to environmental hazards. Additionally, existing environmental hazard, exposure, and disease tracking systems are not linked together. In 2002, Congress provided CDC with funding to begin development of a nationwide environmental public health tracking network and related capacity within state and local health departments. CDC’s goal is to develop a tracking system that integrates data about environmental hazards and exposures with data about diseases. This system will allow federal, state, and local agencies to 1) monitor environmental hazards and disease trends, 2) advance research on possible linkages between environmental hazards and disease, and 3) develop, implement, and evaluate regulatory and public health actions to prevent or control environmentally-related diseases. To accomplish this goal, CDC has funded 30 state and local projects to 1) build environmental public health capacity, 2) increase collaboration between environmental and health agencies 3) identify and evaluate existing data systems, 4) build partnerships with non-governmental organizations and communities, 5) develop model systems that link data and can be applied to other states or localities, and 6) demonstrate how these model systems can be used to help plan public health actions. CDC has also established three academic Centers of Excellence in Environmental Public Health Tracking. These Centers will support CDC and state and local health departments to 1) developing methods to use data from local, state, and national environmental public health tracking systems, and 2) investigate possible links between health effects and the environment.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of this presentation, the participant will be able to

• define environmental public health tracking,
• identify hazards, exposures, and health effects important for environmental public health tracking, and
• describe current activities to develop the National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network.

Keywords: Data/Surveillance, Information System Integration

Related Web page: www.cdc.gov/nceh/tracking/

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.

Recorded presentation