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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

María E. Gutiérrez, MS¹, Shailza Dhawan, BDS¹, Juan Nevarez¹, Thomas Weichle¹, Chi C. Cho, MS¹, Joseph Zanoni, MILR¹, and Rosemary K. Sokas, MD, MOH, MSc². (1) Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, School of Public Health, 2121 W. Taylor M/C 922, Chicago, IL 60612, 312 413 4057, mgutie2@uic.edu, (2) Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences, Room 503, University of Illinois Chicago, School of Public Health, 2121 W. Taylor Street, Chicago, IL 60612-7260

Environmental hazards in the home disproportionately impact young children in immigrant and low SES communities. Perception of risk associated with at-home activities was assessed for parents of young children in an older, close-in suburban community in which 84% of the population is Hispanic. Fully 95% of the housing stock was built before 1979. Two independent instruments, developed in part through discussion with community members, were presented to parents participating in a Health Fair. The first instrument, a hazard ranking activity, consisted of a poster with pictures of thirteen previously community-identified hazards for the participant to place stickers on what they thought were the three most dangerous. The second instrument, a short questionnaire, was interviewer-administered in English or Spanish (depending on participant preference), and included demographic information and sources of information regarding poisons at home. 86 out of 250 registered attendees agreed to answer questions and to vote. 52% answered in Spanish, 37% in English, and 11% had no language preference. The three top participant-prioritized hazards were: car without car seat 16%, hot pan at child's reach 16%, and pesticides at child's reach, 14%. 52% of participants reported having one or two children under the age of 3. Of these, 71% identified physicians as the preferred source of information about household poisons. 62% of the respondents rent their homes, and 37% are home owners. 57% had conducted or are planning home renovations within the year; however, only 9% of the sample ranked lead paint chips among the top 3 hazards.

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