About this IssueThis issue of the Health Risk Communicator is dedicated to risk communication research. The articles include current and ongoing research topics that provide useful results and information for improving risk communications and building hypotheses.Task Force on Environmental Health and Safety Risks to Children Sets PrioritiesElizabeth Blackburn, Environmental Protection AgencyThe Task Force on Environmental Health and Safety Risks to Children, established by Executive Order in April 1997, is co-chaired by Donna E. Shalala, Secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and Carol M. Browner, Administrator of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. The Task Force has set the following four priorities in the fight for better environmental health and safety for children: childhood asthma, the most common chronic condition among children today, affecting 5 million; unintentional injuries, the leading cause of childhood mortality; cancer, another leading cause of mortality in children; and developmental disorders, a leading cause of morbidity in children.Priorities and NeedsChildhood Asthma: Despite many advances in the diagnosis, treatment, and understanding of asthma and its risk factors, childhood mortality rates have continued to rise, with adisproportionate impact on African American children. Affecting 5 million children each year, it is the most prevalent chronic childhood disease. To help reduce the morbidity and mortality from asthma, surveillance must be established to determine trend bases and monitor intervention consequences. Unintentional Injuries: Even though their causes, risk factors, and interventions are generally known, unintentional injuries are still the leading cause of childhood deaths. A broader-scale program is needed to implement and evaluate effective interventions that will help control unintentional injuries among children. Cancer: Cancer is another leading cause of childhood mortality.
With an increase in the
Developmental Disorders: Birth defects especially are leading
causes of childhood morbidity. These and other developmental disorders
(such as cerebral palsy, hearing or vision impairment, autism, and mental
retardation) affect 2 percent of the child population in the Nation, and 10
percent of
children receive special education services because of developmental
disorders.
Although environmental factors have been associated with some developmental
disorders, much work is necessary to determine the extent to which environmental
factors affect the full range of developmental disorders in children.
Next StepsTwo Task Force subcommittees, the Research and Data Needs and the Program Implementation Subcommittees, are in place. The Research and Data Needs Subcommittee is developing an inventory of Federal Government research completed and underway, thus identifying data gaps that need to be filled. The Program and Implementation Subcommittee has created three teams-communications strategies, partnerships, and evaluation-to do the work in those areas. The results of both subcommittees' efforts, when completed, will be available on the Internet.Workgroups, composed of experts in child health, will map out action plans for each of the four priorities. Plans for each area are in different stages of development. At least one priority will be ready for funding by FY 2000. The senior staff planning committee is also analyzing all pending legislation
related to childhood environmental health to provide guidance on which
bill, or sections of bills, should receive support.
White House InvolvementInterest in Task Force activities has originated from several White House offices. The Vice President's Office, the Office of the First Lady, the Council on Environmental Quality, and the Office of Science and Technology Policy have expressed interest in planning Presidential or Vice Presidential events around Task Force efforts and activities.Task Force MembersThe members of the Task Force on Environmental Health and Safety Risks to Children are Ann Brown, Chairman, U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission; Carol Browner, Administrator, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency; Andrew Cuomo, Secretary, U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development; George T. Frampton, Jr., Acting Chairman, Council on Environmental Quality; Dan Glickman, Secretary, U.S. Department of Agriculture; Alexis M. Herman, Secretary, U.S. Department of Labor; Neal Lane, Ph.D., Office of Science and Technology Policy; Jacob Lew, Director, Office of Management and Budget; Federico Peña, Secretary, U.S. Department of Energy; Bruce Reed, Advisor, Office of Domestic Policy/White House; Janet Reno, Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice; Richard Riley, Secretary, U.S. Department of Education; Donna Shalala, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Rodney Slater, Secretary, U.S. Department of Transportation; Gene Sperling, Director, National Economic Council; and Janet Yellen, Chair, Council of Economic Advisers.For more information, contact Elizabeth Blackburn, Environmental Protection Agency (e-mail Blackburn,Elizabeth@epa:mail. epa.gov) at (202) 260-9735. EPA Child Health Champion Pilot ProgramElizabeth Blackburn, Environmental Protection AgencyThe U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA's) Office of Children's Health Protection, created in 1997, has developed a thorough and complete communications strategy including a Child Health Champion Campaign pilot program designed and developed to help empower local citizens and communities. The program will be implemented in 11 diverse locations nationwide.The program is intended to help improve how families make decisions about environmental exposures that could be making their children sick. For each of the 11 pilot communities, a Child Health Champion Community Team will be organized by recruiting members from 6 community sectors: health care; education; government; citizen groups; business/agriculture groups; and construction, building management, and maintenance contractors. Each team is charged with identifying local children's environmental health issues, setting community-specific goals to protect children, and developing action plans to achieve those goals. From each team, EPA will collect data on what each community needs, how that information is best conveyed, what additional help communities need to sustain the efforts, and what works best in different kinds of communities. The following communities have been chosen for the initial implementation: the Cherokee Nation, Talequah, Oklahoma; the Chippewa Cree Tribe, Rocky Boy's Reservation,Montana; East Side /Pico Section, Los Angeles, California; Manchester, New Hampshire; near south/north side sections of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; the Ironbound Section of Newark, New Jersey; three communities in New Madrid County, Missouri; Nogales, Arizona; Prichard, Alabama; Toppenish, Washington; and Anacostia Section, Washington, DC. Environmental health hazards differ in communities but include water contamination, pesticides, lead poisoning, smog, indoor and outdoor air pollution, agricultural runoff, and contaminated fish from contaminated creeks. Other hazards may be identified by the community teams. The Child Health Champion Campaign pilot is funded through fiscal year 1999. At its completion, the program will be evaluated for its effectiveness. Out of this effort, EPA expects to gain the information and expertise to develop a broader-based public campaign to inform people about the basics of children's environmental health. The agency's focus is on getting the message out, versus transmitting an "EPA message." For more information, contact Elizabeth Blackburn, Environmental Protection
Agency (e-mail Blackburn.Elizabeth@epa:mail. epa.gov)
at (202) 260-9735.
Baby Safety ShowersLynn G. Barclay, U.S. Consumer Product Safety CommissionEach year tens of thousands of children are injured in home and child-care settings. Many of the incidents are preventable, especially if parents and care-givers are aware of hidden hazards in the home and other child-care settings. The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission's (CPSC's) mission is to help keep families and children safe and reduce the risk for injury and death from consumer products. In addition, the CPSC has originated a novel way to alert parents and child care givers to preventable hazards.One of CPSC's most successful programs to date is Baby Safety Showers. Launched in late 1995, the program is modeled on traditional baby shower parties, which feature home safety tips and safety-related games and gifts presented in a relaxed setting for parents and parents-to-be. Each game and activity revolves around the Commission's Baby Safety Checklist which explains 12 important safety tips all parents should know to help protect their children. Tips include testing the temperature of bath water before bathing your baby and laying your baby on his or her back to prevent sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The Baby Safety Showers program has proven helpful in creating and promoting valuable partnerships. The program itself was developed in partnership with Gerber Products Company which printed hundreds of thousands of Baby Safety Shower "How-to-Kits" and Baby Safety Checklists for distribution through the CPSC. The CPSC also partnered with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and various national safety and medical organizations to promote Baby Safety Showers. Many community groups have partnered with other local organizations and businesses to ensure success. Members of the U.S. Congress have also supported the program. Several have given safety showers in their communities for their constituencies. A key measure of the program's success is whether its safety message is reaching the intended audiences—low-income parents, parents-to-be, and teenaged mothers. The answer is yes! Since late 1995, hundreds of baby safety showers have been held each year in communities nationwide. Just as important, baby safety showers are becoming institutionalized. Local health departments, hospitals, high schools, churches, and others are incorporating baby safety showers into their ongoing programs. Most importantly, the CPSC's message of children's safety and well-being is getting out to thousands of parents nationwide, day after day, with a potential of helping prevent many needless injuries and deaths. For more information, contact Lynn G. Barclay, U.S. Consumer Product
Safety Commission (e-mail Ibarclay@CPSC.gov)
at (301) 504-0416.
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