211244 Minimizing Public Health Risks from Florida Red Tide: Beach Conditions Report and Marine Toxins Hotline

Monday, November 9, 2009: 3:42 PM

Barbara Kirkpatrick, EdD, RRT , Mote Marine Laboratory, Environmental Health Program, Sarasota, FL
Kate Nierenberg, MS , Mote Marine Laboratory, Environmental Health Program, Sarasota, FL
Andrew Reich, MS, MSPH , Florida Department of Health, Aquatic Toxins Program, Tallahassee, FL
Lorraine C. Backer, PhD, MPH , National Center for Environmental Health, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Chamblee, GA
Lora E. Fleming, MD, PhD , Department of Epidemiology & Public Health, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine - OHH Center and NIOSH Research Group, Miami, FL
  
The toxic aerosols from the blooms of Florida red tide, Karenia brevis, cause respiratory irritation in healthy beachgoers and can trigger reactive airway responses in asthmatics. Two strategies have been developed and maintained to inform the public about these toxic aerosols and their human health effects. The Beach Conditions Reporting System provides near time reports on a variety of conditions important to the beachgoer, including the presence and/or severity of red tide aerosols. The Marine Toxin hotline provides callers with pertinent health information regarding the impacts of these aerosols along with suggested mitigation strategies. Both tools are available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to the public.

Learning Objectives:
Describe one of the strategies Florida has implemented to inform the public about Florida red tide aerosols.

Keywords: Environmental Exposures, Environmental Health Hazards

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am lead PI on the creation of the Beach Conditions Reporting system and am lead author in a peer reviewed publication about the system. I have worked closely with my colleagues at the Marine and Freshwater Toxin Hotline to assure similar messages are being shared with the public regarding Florida red tide.
Any relevant financial relationships? No

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

See more of: Oceans and Human Health: Communicating Public Health Concerns to Communities at Risk
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