Bridging the knowledge gap: Making environmental epidemiology understandable and accessible to California communities via an educational website

Community members often request that state public health departments conduct a health study in their community to study a possible link between toxic exposure and illness. Typically, however, community members' lack of familiarity with epidemiology presents a barrier to effective communication about health study possibilities. To overcome this, the California Department of Public Health designed an innovative educational website that explains the challenges of conducting environmental health studies in small communities. In May 2008, we launched the website, “From exposure to illness: Community health studies and environmental contamination,” accessible at http://www.communityhealthstudies.org. To our knowledge, our website is the first to explain these complex topics effectively and accessibly to the lay public. The target audience includes community advocates and professional colleagues interested in environmental health.

Our website was developed, tested, and revised through a collaborative process involving representatives of this intended audience. Thus, the website has been tailored to include relevant topics and appropriate language for our audience. It includes guidance about when a health study is appropriate and explains the limitations in interpreting results of health studies conducted in small communities. It also features interactive tools such as a study power calculator. The feedback led us to expand information on alternatives to epidemiological studies that could effectively address community goals.

Through January 2009, there were 3,026 unique visitors to the website. This project was funded by the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.