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

Abstract #61937

Carla Campbell, MD, MS¹, Robert Himmelsbach, BS¹, Peter Palermo, MS¹, and Richard E Tobin, MS, MPA². (1) Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Division of Early Childhood, Youth and Women's Health, Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, 2100 West Girard Ave., PNH Building #3, Philadelphia, PA 19130-1400, 215-685-2795, Carla.Campbell@phila.gov, (2) Division of Early Childhood, Youth and Women's Health, Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program, Philadelphia Department of Public Health, 2100 W Girard Ave, PNH #3, Philadelphia, PA 19130-1400

The Lead Abatement Strike Team was developed by the Philadelphia Department of Public Health in response to community concern over management of children with elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs). Fourteen hundred backlog cases for which satisfactory environmental remediation had not been achieved were identified and added to new cases of children with EBLLs. Citywide lead poisoning prevention coalition members gave testimony about the severity of the problem at city council budget meetings. The heightened awareness to this problem coupled with strong support by the Philadelphia Health Commissioner to tackle this problem with renewed energy lead to the appropriation of $1.5 million dollars for environmental remediation. A collaborative group, meeting on a bimonthly basis, included the health commissioner, health and housing officials, and representatives from other relevant agencies. Enforcement was strengthened considerably with the development of the Lead Court, for cases involving non-compliance of property owners in response to remediation orders. Identifying a group of certified private contractors and expanding the health department’s abatement team were crucial to obtaining rapid remediation of homes, facilitated further by the creation of temporary relocation capacity. Since the LAST program was created, 129 and 350 properties achieved compliance during 2 10-month periods in 2001 and 2002, respectively. Therefore, 2.7 times as many properties were brought into compliance under the LAST program; the legacy of the newly created collaboration between health and housing agencies in the city of Philadelphia. Currently in progress is the development of basic system repair work and primary prevention strategies.

Learning Objectives:

• The participant will become informed about various ways in which health departments can collaborate with housing departments to address issues of environmental contamination in the community, using exposure to lead hazards as an example.
• The participant will learn detailed information about creating an infrastructure to facilitate lead hazard remediation, to include creating a core group of certified lead abatement contractors, a legal framework for rapid and effective enforcement of health and housing codes and a system for temporary occupant relocation during remediation.
• The participant will be able to use the knowledge about the infrastructure described for secondary interventions for lead poisoning prevention to start envisioning strategies for utilizing this infrastructure to promote primary prevention of lead poisoning.

Keywords: Collaboration, Lead

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: Philadelphia Department of Public Health
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.

Handout (.ppt format, 3801.5 kb)