EHS Journal of Environmental Health Columns for 2015

The Road Towards Environmental Justice from a Multifaceted Lens. [PDF – 263 KB] – Guest columnist LaToria Whitehead discusses concerns and challenges shared in environmental health and describes ways to strengthen the role of state, local, tribal, and national environmental health professionals to respond to adverse environmental exposures. This article is published in the January-February 2015 issue [PDF – 203 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Modeling Health Impacts of the Transportation Built Environment: Challenges and Opportunities. [PDF – 360 KB] – Guest authors Geoffrey Whitfield and Arthur Wendel discuss the benefits and challenges associated with using models to predict community behaviors while planning the built environment, particularly regarding walking, biking, and using public transit. This article is published in the March 2015 issue [PDF – 109 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Sharing Environmental Health Services Across Jurisdictional Boundaries. [PDF – 536 KB] – CDC authors Liza Corso and Robert Blake and guest authors Gianfranco Pezzino and Patrick Libbey discuss the benefits from cross-jurisdictional sharing of essential public health services and offer examples of successful collaboration from around the nation. This article was published in the April 2015 issue [PDF – 138 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

It’s All about the Return on Investment: The Model Aquatic Health Code. [PDF – 224 KB] – Now that the MAHC has been released, tracking the code’s impact is vital to its long-term success. In this column, CDC authors Michele Hlavsa, Jasen Kunz, and Michael Beach discuss tracking the MAHC’s impact in key areas with the top five public pool states and how the MAHC will be updated in the future. This article was published in the May 2015 issue [PDF – 120 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Environmental Health Professionals Work the Bugs Out – School Integrated Pest Management. [PDF – 631 KB] – Every day, millions of children going to school may unwittingly be exposed to harmful pesticides. Guest authors Dawn Gouge and Marc Lame discuss how integrated pest management can reduce pesticide reliance while maintaining a safe, pest-free learning environment for children. This article was published in the June 2015 issue [PDF – 200 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Equipping Environmental Health Workers with Environmental Assessment Tools. [PDF – 671 KB] – Food-related illnesses affect tens of millions of people each year, killing thousands and costing billions of dollars in hospital- and industry-related expenses. In this article, Erik Coleman discusses two innovative tools for environmental health workers to assist in fighting this “winnable battle” – an e-learning training and a reporting system on environmental assessments of outbreaks. This article was published in the July/August 2015 issue [PDF – 200 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Letter Grading and Transparency Promote Restaurant Food Safety in New York City. [PDF – 633 KB] – In this article, Wendy McKelvey, Melissa Wong, and Bailey Matis share proactive steps the NYC Health Department (a CDC Environmental Health Specialist Network [EHS-Net] grantee) has taken to improve food safety in NYC’s 24,000 restaurants, including creating an app with restaurant inspection grades. This article was published in the September 2015 issue [PDF – 98 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

EHSB’s Free Resources for Environmental Health Practitioners. [PDF – 413 KB] – Environmental health practitioners need current information with the latest research and best practices. In this column Elaine Curtiss highlights food safety, water protection, and performance improvement resources on the newly updated Environmental Health Services Branch (EHSB) website. This article was published in the October 2015 issue [PDF – 98 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Rodent Control and Public Health: A Description of Local Rodent Control Programs [PDF – 152 KB] – Controlling rodents in rural and urban settings has been a public health challenge for many years. In this article, guest author Lisa Brown and CDC author Joe Laco discuss the National Association of County and City Health Officials’ profile of 9 rodent control programs across the nation to understand their capacity, challenges, best practices, and needs. This article was published in the November 2015 issue [PDF – 92 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.

Improving State and Local Capacity to Assess and Manage Risks Associated with Private Wells and Other Drinking Water Systems Not Covered by the Safe Drinking Water Act [PDF – 402 KB] – Eleven percent of U.S. households (~35 million people) use drinking water systems that are not covered by the Environmental Protection Agency’s Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA). In this column, Raquel Sabogal and Brian Hubbard discuss CDC’s funding initiative supporting 11 state and local grantees to improve their capacity to assess and manage risks associated with drinking water systems not covered by the SDWA. This article was published in the December 2015 issue [PDF – 249 KB] of the Journal of Environmental Health.