As natural and man-made emergencies or disasters have negative repercussions on the environmental health and safety of those affected, it is imperative that the Environmental Health and Emergency Preparedness/Response (EHEPR) programs of local public health departments coordinate their efforts to engage with communities in discovering solutions to disparities in emergency preparedness. In this mixed methods, quasi-experimental study, we are comparing the conventional expert-driven approach to public health emergency preparedness by the San Bernardino County EHEPR workforce to an environmental health emergency preparedness (EHEP) community-based participatory approach by the Riverside County EHEPR workforce. These adjacent counties have the greatest land mass in the nation, but are two of the most resource poor. Almost half of their population is Latino, many being low English proficient. A great proportion of the residents of these two counties live adjacent to the largest railyards east of the Los Angeles port cities. In addition to the chronic earthquake threats endemic to all of California, their health and safety is endangered by environmental hazards including high levels of air pollution due to train and truck exhaust and potential hazardous materials spills resulting from train derailments. Formative research was conducted with EHEPR and community residents of both counties using key informant interviews, validation focus groups, windshield surveys, and GIS demographic mapping. The qualitative data set was transcribed, coded, and analyzed for emerging themes. Next, the EHEPR workforces were surveyed to examine personal and collective efficacy, capacity, and readiness to engage community organizations and members in environmental health emergency preparedness. Community capacity to deal with emergencies was captured in a household survey administered in both counties. Baseline assessment findings lead to the creation of a culturally-appropriate EHEP community program for Riverside County. Such alliances are essential for public health to effectively move forward in these challenging times.
This year the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) has added a new way to participate in the Call for Abstracts process for the Annual Educational Conference (AEC) & Exhibition. It is called, "Be a voice" and it gives you the opportunity to tell us what you’d like to experience at the AEC. Tell us topics you’d like to hear about and speakers you’d like to see. Review abstracts and provide input.
Help NEHA develop a training and education experience that continues to advance the proficiency of the environmental health profession AND helps create bottom line improvements for your organization!To search for specific abstracts, please use the search box located at the top left of the page (*next to the Blogger icon).
HELPFUL LINKS: How to Participate and Use this Blog | Disclosure | NEHA Blog Policy and Participation Guide
ADDITIONAL WAYS TO PARTICIPATE: Submit An Abstract | Suggest a Topic | Suggest a Speaker | Questions?
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