The Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health (MCECH) is funded by the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences and the Environmental Protection Agency through their Center of Excellence for Children's Environmental Health Initiative. MCECH's research projects focus on: 1) determining the effects of allergen-induced local, excessive produciton of chemokines on the respiratory systems; 2) assessing the separate and possible interaction effects of outdoor and indoor air quality on exacerbation of asthma in children; and 3) a combined household and neighborhood level intervention focusing on reduction of environmental triggers for asthma among children in selected areas of Detroit. The latter two projects have been combined to form Community Action Against Asthma (CAAA). A unique feature of the CAAA project is the use of a community-based participatory research approach. The CAAA partnership is guided by a steering committee composed of representatives of community-based organizations, the local health department, an integrated managed care system and an inter-disciplinary mix of academic researchers (environmental scientists, epidemiologists, pediatric pulmonologists, social scientists). All members of the Steering Committee jointly decide the research and intervention methods for the CAAA project. This presentation will provide an overview of MCECH, examine the role of the CAAA partnership in the design and implementation of the project; describe and analyze the intervention to date; and discuss the integration of the research, intervention and evaluation components of the project.
Learning Objectives: By the end of this presentation, participants will be able to: 1. Understand the structure of the Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health 2. Describe the projects of the Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health 3. Describe the data collection and intervention activities of the Community Action Against Asthma project of the Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health. 4. Understand the role of community representatives in the research and intervention activities of the Community Action Against Asthma project of the Michigan Center for the Environment and Children's Health
Keywords: Asthma, Community Participation
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
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.