220210 Healthy Homes: Challenges of integrating lead into an asthma home visiting program

Tuesday, November 9, 2010 : 4:45 PM - 5:00 PM

Pat McLaine, RN, MPH, DrPH , Department of Family and Community Health, University of Maryland School of Nursing, Columbia, MD
Kate Scott, RN, MPH , Healthy Homes and Communities Division, Baltimore City Health Department, Baltimore, MD
Madeleine Shea, PhD , Deputy Commissioner of Healthy Homes and Communities, Baltimore City Health Department, Baltimore, MD
     
The Reducing Asthma Disparities (RAD) Initiative is an asthma home visiting program designed to assist moderate to severe asthmatic children ages 4 to 18 in Baltimore City. The program aims to reduce home based asthma triggers, improve asthma management, and establish community-based support networks for families within a healthy home's framework, including assessment of and education about lead hazards.

Older homes make up the majority of the Baltimore City's housing stock. Although Maryland has a strong lead law, requiring registration and treatment of pre-1950 rental housing to protect children from lead hazards, we anticipated that some of the homes we would visit would not be in full compliance. In these homes, families with pre-school aged children could be at risk for exposure to lead hazards.

More than one third of homes we have visited have dust lead levels above the current EPA standards. Approximately ½ of these homes are pre-1950 rental units, not registered in accordance with Maryland Law. Not surprisingly a large number of older homes, both rental and owner-occupied with the worst asthma triggers also have lead hazards.

Additionally, some families have few housing options. We will report on a number of challenges and describe elements of a comprehensive housing approach we have used to ensure that at-risk families have access to affordable housing that is asthma friendly and lead safe.

Learning Areas:
Administer health education strategies, interventions and programs
Conduct evaluation related to programs, research, and other areas of practice
Implementation of health education strategies, interventions and programs
Planning of health education strategies, interventions, and programs
Public health or related organizational policy, standards, or other guidelines

Learning Objectives:
1. Discuss the complex relationship of integrating a Healthy Homes model in an asthma home visiting program. 2. Evaluate the available resources when implementing a healthy homes asthma home visiting program.

Keywords: Asthma, Lead

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am the project director for the Reducing Asthma Disparities (RAD) initiative.
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.

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