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On January 3, 1977, Howell Township, New Jersey closed its schools while scientists tested for dangerous levels of asbestos. After reports of unexplained ailments in some children, the parents of 4,500 elementary school children had threatened to boycott classes until the Board of Education removed asbestos-containing materials. Similar cases occurred across the country. In February, 1977, the New York Times reported that the child whose illness had been attributed to asbestos actually had mononucleosis. Was the reaction of parents and officials unwarranted? Did scientific evidence exist indicating that asbestos in schools caused children to become ill? Was all the relevant information - including the impact of their decisions on public policy in the future - considered? Environmental Public Health Policy for Asbestos in Schools addresses these questions by focusing on the development, institutionalization, and consequences of federal environmental policy for asbestos in schools. This unique and timely book explores the history of asbestos in schools and buildings and how this issue shaped the development of public health policy. Insight into past policy, including how, why, and who caused action to be taken, will enlighten and guide the scientific and regulatory communities in the future. The story of asbestos is a cautionary tale. Other toxic agents, such as lead, nitrogen dioxide and radon, could follow the same model as asbestos, raising similar questions. Written in a straightforward style, Environmental Public Health Policy for Asbestos in Schools explains technical concepts in language easily understood by non-experts. Understanding the factors and judgments involved in this issue gives insight into how the government - and society - perceives, assesses, and develops public health policy.
Provides guidance on controlling asbestos-containing materials (ACM) found in buildings. Provides a current summary of data on exposure to airborne asbestos; gives survey procedures for determining if ACM is present in buildings; explains how to establish a special operations and maintenance program in a building found to contain asbestos; reviews technical issues confronted when assessing the potential for exposure to airborne asbestos, in particular indoor settings; suggests a structured process for selecting a particular course of action, and much more. Commonly referred to as the Blue Book.
This book examines the policy and politics of two health risks, which have recently become prominent social issues in many countries. One is the issue of asbestos as an environmental risk to humans, and another is that of bovine spongiform encephalitis (BSE), or mad cow disease as an animal disease, and of its variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD) as a human food risk. Employing a set of analytical frameworks in political science, each case study explores how the issues emerged, agendas got set, alternatives were chosen, and policies were implemented. Through the analysis, it is examined how safety and public reassurance were pursued in the countries studied (Japan, the UK, France the USA, and Korea). Exploration of the successes and failures in their efforts discloses the key elements to successful health risk management.
This book explores various and distinct aspects of environmental health literacy (EHL) from the perspective of investigators working in this emerging field and their community partners in research. Chapters aim to distinguish EHL from health literacy and environmental health education in order to classify it as a unique field with its own purposes and outcomes. Contributions in this book represent the key aspects of communication, dissemination and implementation, and social scientific research related to environmental health sciences and the range of expertise and interest in EHL. Readers will learn about the conceptual framework and underlying philosophical tenets of EHL, and its relation to health literacy and communications research. Special attention is given to topics like dissemination and implementation of culturally relevant environmental risk messaging, and promotion of EHL through visual technologies. Authoritative entries by experts also focus on important approaches to advancing EHL through community-engaged research and by engaging teachers and students at an early age through developing innovative STEM curriculum. The significance of theater is highlighted by describing the use of an interactive theater experience as an approach that enables community residents to express themselves in non-verbal ways.
The United States is among the wealthiest nations in the world, but it is far from the healthiest. Although life expectancy and survival rates in the United States have improved dramatically over the past century, Americans live shorter lives and experience more injuries and illnesses than people in other high-income countries. The U.S. health disadvantage cannot be attributed solely to the adverse health status of racial or ethnic minorities or poor people: even highly advantaged Americans are in worse health than their counterparts in other, "peer" countries. In light of the new and growing evidence about the U.S. health disadvantage, the National Institutes of Health asked the National Research Council (NRC) and the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to convene a panel of experts to study the issue. The Panel on Understanding Cross-National Health Differences Among High-Income Countries examined whether the U.S. health disadvantage exists across the life span, considered potential explanations, and assessed the larger implications of the findings. U.S. Health in International Perspective presents detailed evidence on the issue, explores the possible explanations for the shorter and less healthy lives of Americans than those of people in comparable countries, and recommends actions by both government and nongovernment agencies and organizations to address the U.S. health disadvantage.
Asbestos is the commercial name for various mineral silicates associated with numerous respiratory diseases, notably mesothelioma, asbestosis and lung cancer. This book examines risk assessments, health implications and impacts on the environment of asbestos. Chapter One provides a summary of exposure during abatement/removal of asbestos-containing floor tile and mastic. Chapter Two discusses the epidemiological patterns of environmental asbestos-related disease. Chapter Three reviews the reduction of anti-tumor immunity caused by asbestos exposure. Chapter Four summarises current knowledge about the putative role of asbestos exposure in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma carcinogenesis. Chapter Five determines the impact of malignant mesothelioma (MM) using average life years lost and lifetime healthcare expenditures in Taiwan. Chapter Six reviews recent perspectives on both asbestos-related pleuritis and anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-related vasculitides. Chapter Seven clarifies subjects for protective policies against asbestos disaster and the meanings of local government asbestos measures in the case of Japan. Chapter Eight includes an overview of the mineralogical and morphological characterisation of asbestos in Argentina.
Public health officials have the traditional responsibilities of protecting the food supply, safeguarding against communicable disease, and ensuring safe and healthful conditions for the population. Beyond this, public health today is challenged in a way that it has never been before. Starting with the 9/11 terrorist attacks, public health officers have had to spend significant amounts of time addressing the threat of terrorism to human health. Hurricane Katrina was an unprecedented disaster for the United States. During the first weeks, the enormity of the event and the sheer response needs for public health became apparent. The tragic loss of human life overshadowed the ongoing social and economic disruption in a region that was already economically depressed. Hurricane Katrina reemphasized to the public and to policy makers the importance of addressing long-term needs after a disaster. On October 20, 2005, the Institute of Medicine's Roundtable on Environmental Health Sciences, Research, and Medicine held a workshop which convened members of the scientific community to highlight the status of the recovery effort, consider the ongoing challenges in the midst of a disaster, and facilitate scientific dialogue about the impacts of Hurricane Katrina on people's health. Environmental Public Health Impacts of Disasters: Hurricane Katrina is the summary of this workshop. This report will inform the public health, first responder, and scientific communities on how the affected community can be helped in both the midterm and the near future. In addition, the report can provide guidance on how to use the information gathered about environmental health during a disaster to prepare for future events.
As with the first edition, this second edition describes how environmental health policies are developed, the statutes and other policies that have evolved to address public health concerns associated with specific environmental hazards, and the public health foundations of the policies. It lays out policies for what is considered the major environmental physical hazards to human health. Specifically, the authors describe hazards from air, water, food, hazardous substances, and wastes. To this list the authors have added the additional concerns from climate change, tobacco products, genetically-modified organisms, environment-related diseases, energy production, biodiversity and species endangerment, and the built environment. And as with the first edition, histories of policymaking for specific environmental hazards are portrayed. This edition differs from its antecedent in three significant themes. Global perspectives are added to chapters that describe specific environmental hazards, e.g., air pollution policies in China and India. Also there is the material on the consequences of environmental hazards on both human and ecosystem health. Additionally readers are provided with information about interventions that policymakers and individuals can consider in mitigating or preventing specific environmental hazards.