|
RISK COMMUNICATION AND THE PROTECTION OF Effective communication on the risks of environmental hazards to children is critical to developing intervention and prevention programs. Risk communication is not a one-way transfer of information from the expert to the non-expert, but an interactive process of exchange of information and opinion among individuals, groups, and institutions. Risk messages must be accurate, credible, and understandable. In order for risk messages on the environmental threats to children not be misleading, they must be evidence-based and placed in an overall framework of priority concerns regarding children’s health. In order to obtain a realistic perspective of the major issues related to children’s environmental health in Pacific Basin countries, a questionnaire was sent to participants prior to the meeting. The following tables summarizes the responses from 34 participants representing 12 countries.
Mongolia surface water chemistry and its impact to human health The rivers
in Mongolia are originate from one of the three largest mountain ranges:
Mongol-Altai, Hangai-Huvsgul and Hentein. The rivers are divided into
three main basins, depending on its drainage system: Arctic Ocean Basin
(AOB), Pacific Ocean Basin (POB), and Internal Drainage Basin (IDB) of
Central Asia. Mongolia water resources are unequally distributed over
the country i.e. in the northern part of the country the available water
per capita is 4-5 times more than the world average while it is 10 time
less in southern part i.e. in the Gobi. Similarly water quality also has
spatial character. The chemical composition of the rivers and their
changes are related to variations in altitude and climatic conditions.
For example: the rivers flowing from the high mountains have lower
concentrations of ions, whereas the water in southern part has
relatively high amount of ions. In other word the water in northern part
of the country represent low salinity soft water while the water of the
southern part represent high salinity hard water.
Aeroallergens
in Singapore - outdoor environment Continuous air sampling of the outdoor airspora environment in Singapore has been carried out since 1990 at 3 different sites. Fungal spores were found to be numerically dominant, comprising between 86.0-89.4% of the total airspora which also consisted of spores of fern (6.2-8.6%) and pollen grains (4.4-5.4%). Conidia of Cladosporium were the most abundant fungal spore type, followed by the ascospores of Didymosphaeria, and the conidia of Curvularia, Drechslera and Pithomyces. The predominant fern spore present in the atmosphere was that of Nephrolepis auriculata (making up between 50.9-55.8% of the total fern spore counts), followed by spores of Dicranopteris linearis (24.4-27.1% of total fern spores), Stenochlaena palustris (5.2-6.2%), Asplenium nidus (2.0-3.8%), Pteridium aquilinum (2.8-3.6%) and Dicranopteris curranii (3.4-4.4%). With pollen grains, pollen of Elaeis guineensis, Casuarina equisetifolia and Kyllingia polyphylla were the most abundant (> 20% of total pollen depending on the site). Pollen of Acacia auriculiformis, Ptycosperma macarthuri and Podocarpus polystachyus were also found relatively frequent (>10% of the days surveyed). Seasonal variations in the spore or pollen densities were discernible despite the relatively uniform tropical climate. In addition, association between spore/pollen counts and local meteorological conditions were also analyzed and found to be highly correlated. This study has thus identified the unique airspora profile of the local Singapore environment. Sensitization to these airspora has also been documented.
Regional Issues Concerning Children's Environmental Health - Singapore This presentation will look at several issues concerning children's health in relation to the environment in Singapore. The island city state of Singapore is notable for its modern and highly urbanized environment. To obtain leads into issues that may affect children in Singapore, we looked at it from the healthcare utilization perspective. The leading causes of hospitalization for children under the age of 15 years old are (1) accidents and injuries (accounting for 6.3% of the total), (2) asthma (5.6%), (3) congenital anomalies (5.0%) and other perinatal conditions (4.3%). The leading disease conditions seen in private practitioner clinics and government are upper respiratory tract infections (>50%) and asthma (8%). From these figures, it was noted that asthma figured prominently as a leading cause of morbidity in Singapore children. Our recent survey showed that at least 1 in 5 school children has been doctor diagnosed with asthma. A substantial degree under-recognition however still exist. Asthma has also been estimated (conservatively) to cost approximately US$37 million per annum in a population of 3 million. With atopy being highly associated with asthma, we thus evaluated the indoor and outdoor aeroallergen environment in Singapore. Dust mites were found to be highly prevalent in Singapore homes, with Blomia tropicalis being the most prevalent. The atopic population was found to be highly sensitized to the unique local mite fauna. The outdoor environment was also found to be an important source of allergens. Fungal spores were numerically dominant outdoors (86-89% of total airspora). Additionally, a total of 34 fern spore and 83 pollen types were also identified. Sensitization to the major pollen and spores has been documented. We have also observed that the childhood acute asthma exacerbation rates (documented as hospital admissions and emergency room visits) have distinct peaks in January-February, May and August each year. Ambient air pollutant levels may play a role in contributing to this seasonal variation. This presentation will also touch on the regional haze and its effects on respiratory health, particularly in children.
Aeroallergens in Singapore - indoor environment The indoor environment of Singapore is rich sources of allergens. This presentation summarizes the allergenic profile of this island city state which is notable for its highly urbanized environment. We evaluated the prevalence and distribution of indoor allergens in a cross-section of 956 dust samples obtained from homes, childcare centres, schools, and a hospital. Additionally, we evaluated the dust mite fauna in 134 of these dust samples from 50 homes. Our results showed that homes had significantly higher concentrations allergens compared to the other locations, except for the cockroach allergens, where higher mean levels were found in schools. Within the homes, the highest concentrations of mite allergens were found in bedroom mattresses and carpets, whilst cockroach allergens were mainly concentrated in the storerooms and kitchens. Animal dander allergens were well distributed and not confined to homes with pets. Their highest levels were found in dust of soft furnishings, which included the sofas, carpets and mattresses. There was an absence of significant seasonal variation in dust mite allergen levels in the homes over a one year period. From our mite isolation studies, we found 130/134 (97%) samples infested with mites. All samples from sofas and carpets had more than 500 mites/g compared to 47/50 (94%) and 23/50 (46%) from mattresses and floors, respectively. Blomia tropicalis was the predominant mite (62% of total mites) followed by Dermatophagoides pteronyssinus (16% of total mites). Additionally, a unique fauna was observed with samples infested with less known dust mites such as Sturnophagoides brasiliensis, Tarsonemus granarius, Austroglycyphagus malaysiensis, Cheyletus malaccensis, Malayoglyphus intermedius and Suidasia pontifica. The results indicate that compared to public places, the home still consitutes a major reservior of indoor allergens. Allergens of the storage mite, B. tropicalis, should be considered as a major allergenic component of dust in Singapore.
Mongolian climate and
children health There are
human death and distribution of disease on the World, because of the
World climate changes and Weather unstable conditions. Human have
adapted to the environment, but they still have unhealthy and healthy
situation with the climate changes. In other word human health is fully
dependent on weather conditions. In case of Mongolia, the severe
continental climate has becoming the main factor of certain diseases and
their quick distribution. In time assessment of weather impact to the
human health could support the possibility to prevent from unsuitable
impact to the human health and reduction of negative influences. Air
pollution caused by human activity results in increase of some diseases
of city inhabitants in Mongolia. About 55 percent of total population of
Mongolia live in cities particularly 25 per cent live in Ulaanbaatar.
Thus the purpose of this paper is to assess the relationship between air
pollution of Ulaanbaatar city (the capital) and children's respiratory
sickness. The result of the study snows clear linear relation of
increased concentration of CO, SO2, NO2 in air and respiratory diseases.
Its correlation coefficient was 0.83. Children's Respiratory diseases of
children under 5 years old is 2-3 times higher in Ulaanbaatar than in
rural area. The results are represented in time/seasonal bases i.e air
pollution increases when air temperature changes exceeds 4.60C. Air
pollution in Ulaanbaatar increases in winter time accordingly the pick
of respiratory diseases occur in this period. Moreover, 25-42 percent of
the inspected and 32.6 percent of treated patients have respiration
diseases.
Cognitive and Behavioral Alterations from Environmental Contaminates
There is increasing evidence
that a variety of environmental contaminates, including metals like lead
and methyl mercury and organic substances such as polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins and some pesticides, cause detrimental effects
on intelligence and behavior in children. While all of these substances
cause neurotoxicity at any age at high doses, prenatal or early
postnatal exposure to such xenobiotics, when the brain is developing,
causes damage which appears to be irreversible.
Performing A
Community Health Assessment A manual describing the necessary steps for an initial community health assessment is presented. The manual is written for individuals who lack scientific training in research methods but are concerned about the influences of environmental contamination on the health of their community. Many communities of the world lack access to help from the scientific community. Steps covered include ways to identify local concerns, creating community interest in the topic, various approaches to assessment, analysis of data and writing the final report. The results of the study are meant to identify areas in which professional research may be of value and to stimulate local change for an improved environment. The manual is written in basic English, with definitions of scientific terms. Limited copies of the manual will be available for NGOs and community workers.
TOXIC EXPOSURES AND
POISONING IN CHILDREN This paper
presents an overview on toxic exposures in children (global aspects), on
the type and circumstances of exposure, the main chemicals involved and
the roles played by poisons centres (PCs) and related facilities. It
states the main activities developed by the International Programme on
Chemical Safety (IPCS) and the Task Force on the Protection of
Children's Environmental Health, set up by the Department for the
Protection of the Human Environment in July 1999.
DDT pesticide residue in
human milk Mother's
milk is the main food for a baby also as a good media for assessing
exposure of pesticide because it is easy to collect, non-invasive and
has been shown to give an indication of long term accrual of pesticide
residues. DDT was banned in Indonesia in the early 1980s (except for
Malaria Eradication Programme), but since 1994 DDT has not been used
anymore in Indonesia for Anopheles mosquito control.
Immunotoxicology
and Childhood Diseases Children are
exposed to various environmental contaminants including heavy metals,
fine particles, volatile organic compounds, polycyclic aromatic
hydrocarbons, and pesticides through ingestion, inhalation, or skin
contact. Human health risk from exposure to the environmental toxicants
has been assessed primarily on carcinogencitiy, neurotoxicity,
respiratory illness, and developmental effects. Since the immune system
of children is undergoing maturation, an immunological perturbation
resulting from exposure to an environmental toxicant may increase
susceptibility to childhood diseases such as infectious diseases,
allergic diseases, or cancer. Furthermore, a variety of neurological or
endocrinological problems may be related with environmental
toxicant-induced disturbances in immunohomeostasis, considering
accumulated evidence of neuro-endocrine-immune system cross-talks.
Some findings of a study on effects of herbicides and defoliation on
health status of people living in A luoi Valley, Vietnam A large
amount of herbicides and defoliation was used to destroy the forest of
South Vietnam by the U.S. Army during the years 1961 to 1971. The levels
of use for the military operation (Ranch Hand Operation) was 20 to 40
times greater than for normal agricultural usage. A luoi Valley is an
area along the Ho Chi Minh trail. It was been one of the most heavily
sprayed areas (approximately a half million gallons). Since 1993, a
survey has been implemented by the 10-80 Committee with support from the
Hatfield Group (Canada) to assess the environmental and epidemiological
status of A luoi Valley and its population.
Environmental Health Issues of Children in Villages in the Vicinity of a
Paper and Pulp Mill
Recently,
some villagers living along Sungei Kampar, Sumatra, believed their
health was affected by polluted river water. The main concern was skin
complaints. It was perceived that effluent discharges from a pulp and
paper mill was the cause.
EPIDEMIOLOGY OF CHILDHOOD
ASTHMA Epidemiology
provides information not only on the magnitude of problems a disease
imposes on society but also helps shed light on its aetiology. In an
attempt to better define the impact and aetiology of asthma, the
International Study of Asthma and Allergies in Childhood (ISAAC) Phase I
conducted standardised simple surveys in school children from most
regions of the world. Two age groups (13-14 and 6-7 yrs) comprised over
0.7 million children were studied, of which 2/3 were from the older age
group. Marked variations in the prevalence of asthma symptoms with up to
15-fold differences were seen between countries. The prevalence of
wheeze in the last 12 months ranged from 2.1-32.2% in the older age
group and 4.1-32.1% in the younger age group. Prevalence was highest in
English-speaking countries and Latin America, and lowest in the less
affluent countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and Africa.
Risk Assessment for Children and Other Sensitive Populations Children
form a unique subgroup within the population who require special
consideration in risk assessment. Children are not little adults. Their
tissues and organs grow rapidly, developing and differentiating. These
development processes create windows of great
Agent Orange
and Its Effects on Children's Health Agent Orange was an herbicide employed during the years 1961 to 1971 in the Vietnam War. It is the code name for a mixture of 2,4,5-T (2,4,5.-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid 545.4 Kg/m3) and 2,4-D (2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid 485.1 kg/m3), altogether weighing 1 285 kg/m3. Associated with the 2,4,5-T moiety is the impurity, dioxin, (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p- dioxin). This paper is to review currently epidemiology and environmental studies on Agent Orange and its effects on children's health in Vietnam. Surveys of Vietnamese soldiers show that 5% of the children fathered by veterans who were heavily exposed to Agent Orange were born with birth defects, compared to only 1% for soldiers who remained in North Vietnam and avoided exposure. A survey among Vietnamese veterans shows that the relative risk in the heavily exposed group is 4.27, with a Chi square of 22.22 and p<0.001 with 95% confidence interval is 8.28-617.29. A case-control study in 2 similar villages in South Vietnam showed the birth defect in a sprayed village was 4 times higher than in an unsprayed village (Relative risk: 4.2). A cohort study showed an obvious correlation between dioxin exposure and birth defects in newborns: relative risk: 3.24, chi-square: 18.64, p<0.001. An analytical study of breast milk contaminated with dioxin in South Vietnam showed that: Dioxin levels in breast milk of nursing mothers living in South Vietnam tend to increase gradually from the mean value of 1331.0 ppt (in1970) to 498.5ppt (in 1987-1988). Hanoi, an area exempt from spraying missions, showed the lowest dioxin levels (TCDD=2.2ppt TEQ=8.8ppt) meanwhile, in South Vietnam, TCDD and TEQ in Ho Chi Minh city are respectively 7.7ppt and 18.5ppt and in Song Be are 17.0ppt and 31.7ppt (on basis of fat containing in breast milk). A chromosomal analysis in generation F2 of Agent Orange exposed veterans has noted higher frequency of most chromosome aberrations than that of control group (p<0.001). Even with the limitations on research in Vietnam, there are strong indications that exposure to dioxin has led to a significant increase in serious birth defects.
Environmental threats to the health of children in Cambodia Cambodia is
one among the poor countries that was affected by the civil war almost
two decades. So far, every infrastructure like: school, road, irrigation
Children and Environmental Toxicants: The Philippine Experience Various
forms of toxicants beginning at the home environment confront the
Filipino child. Data from our Poison Center shows that accidental
poisoning occurs as a consequence of exposure to household poisons like
kerosene, insecticides, rat killers, naphthalene balls and bleaching
agents to name a few. Since 1991, accidental ingestion of a dancing
firecracker called "watusi" became an important cause for mortality and
morbidity among our children. White phosphorus is the most toxic
component of "watusi". While exposure to environmental tobacco smoke has
been an old problem, today the Filipino child is threatened by in-utero
exposure to a methamphetamine.
Deterioration of children's health due to
environmental causes is directly related to the increase in
breast cancer incidence In the
region of Western Mindanao with a population of 2.8 million where 75%
live below poverty level, only 120,664 or one fourth of households have
access to safe water facilities - all in the urban areas of the three
provinces. This situation can be understood from the fact that only 14%
of 17,563 hectares for reforestation has been accomplished and an aerial
view confirms that much of the rainforest areas have already been
denuded. In Zamboanga del Sur, severely eroded areas constitute 269,170
hectares or about 41% of the total land.
Persistent Organochlorine Residues in Human Breast Milk from Cambodia,
India, Japan and the Philippines Concentrations of persistent organochlorine residues such as hexachlorocyclohexane isomers (HCHs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), chlordane compounds (CHLs), dichlorodiphenyltrichloethane (DDTs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were determined in milk, sampled in 1998-1999 from mothers living in Cambodia, India, Japan and Philippines. Formula milk powder from two leading food companies in Japan were also analysed for residues of these organochlorine compounds. Differences in contaminant pattern was observed among the countries with DDTs found to be rather high in Cambodia, HCHs highest values in samples from India and those from Japan have high PCBs residues. While OCs residues were at comparatively lower levels in the milk samples from the Philippines, it was evident that breast milk samples analysed here have higher residual OCs concentrations compared with the very minimal residues found in formula milk powder studied.
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION IN TRADITIONAL SMALL SCALE & COTTAGE INDUSTRIES
- OCCUPATIONAL HEALTH FOR WOMEN AND CHILDREN In most of
the South Asian countries including India for socio-cultural and
economic reasons, among others, occupational health of women workers,
direct and indirect influence on children call for specific attention
since large percentage of women are engaged in unorganized, traditional
and unprotected small scale and cottage industrial sector such as Beedi
(indigenous cigarette) rolling, match and fire works, hair collection
from animal skins in tanneries etc. Even in Organized industries like
electronics and chemical industries, emphasis for in-depth in study and
support to the improvement of occupational health and safety of the
"female" workers is considered essential. This is not only because of
women's biological requirements as child bearers and nurtures but also
because of the distinctly different nature of their roles on the labour
market.
Mechanisms and Triggers of
Asthma Recent
epidemiological studies have demonstrated that several asthma syndromes
exist and suggest that they may have different risk factors. The main
syndromes are: transient infantile wheeze viral-associated wheeze and
atopic asthma. The role of atopy in asthma is well recognized but the
reasons why many atopics do not develop asthma are less well understood.
Initial priming of T-cells to environmental allergens occurs inutero. At
birth the normal T-cell response to food and inhalant allergens is to
produce cytokines typical of the T helper type 2 (TH-2) response, ie
IL4, 5, 9 & 13. By late childhood, the normal response has changed to a
TH-1 type response, producing interferon gamma and IL-10. The failure of
this normal
Risk Assessment Issues and Approaches to Children's Environmental Health In 1995, the
Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was directed
to explicitly and consistently take into account environmental health
risks to infants and children in all risk characterizations and public
health standards set for the United States. In 1996, EPA announced a
National Agenda to Protect Children's Health from Environmental Threats.
On April 21, 1997 President Clinton issued an Executive Order (EO) on
the Protection of Children from Environmental Health Risks and Safety
Risks. The 1996 Food Quality Protection Act (FQPA) contains specific
provisions to protect the health of infants and children in the absence
of complete data on the harmful effects of pesticides and calls for the
re-evaluation of nearly 10,000 existing pesticide tolerances within
ten-year period. The 1996 Safe Drinking Water Act Amendments include a
new focus on setting priorities based on risk to sensitive
subpopulations from exposure to drinking water contaminants. These and
some other drivers such as the National Academy of Sciences report in
1993 on Pesticides in the Diets of Infants and Children and the Office
of Science and Technology report issued in 1997 on Investing in our
Future: a National Research Initiative for America's children for the
21st century? have focused our attention on the children's environmental
health.
Exposure assessment of environmental microbes for children in southern
Taiwan While
children's health effects resulting from exposure of general air
pollutaion remain the focus of much research interest, increasing
literature has suggested associations between damp environments,
microbial exposure, and higher prevalence of respiratory symptoms and
diseases.
The
Global Burden of Environmental Disease in Children Patterns of
illness in children have changed dramatically in this century. Chemical
toxicants in the environment as well as poverty, racism, and inequitable
access to medical care are factors known and suspected to contribute to
causation of a variety of pediatric diseases. Children are at risk of
exposure to over 15,000 high-production-volume synthetic chemicals,
nearly all of them developed within the past 50 years. These chemicals
are used widely in consumer products and are dispersed in the
environment. Children appear uniquely vulnerable to chemical toxicants
because of their disproportionately heavy exposures and their biological
growth and development. The etiologies of many diseases of childhood are
due to a combination of factors, including genetic susceptibility and
environmental exposures during vulnerable periods of development.
Thanal
Conservation Action & Information Network Periya in
Keralam of India is a village. This is similar to any other rural
villages of India but being in Keralam the village has a good number of
people and greenery. The midland laterite hills and the nearby sea adds
richness in biological diversity.
Regional Environmental Issues Concerning Children's Health - A
Situationer
Environmental threats to children's health are many and in the Phil. and
its neighbors (ASEAN countries) these are identified to be associated
with poverty, livelihood, effects of natural calamities (volcano
eruptions, forest fires, flooding). In addition there is the issue of
toxic waste
Dioxins in
the foodchain of Ya-Er Lake area, China The consumption of contaminated fish and eggs can be significant contributions to the daily intake of PCDD/F, especially in the case when people use wastewater and sewage sludge for fish culture in some industry area. Ya-Er Lake is located in the middle part of China connecting the Yangtze River. The lake was heavily polluted by discharging chloralkali effluent from 1965-1993. We selected the five oxidation ponds near effluent inlet in the lake area as our study sites and investigated the transfer and biooaccumulation of PCDD/F in Ya-Er Lake area. Water, sediment, macroinvertebrate, fish, fish-eating bird, duck, duckeggs and human milk were collected and analyzed in 1997. As high as 420 ng I-TEQ /kg of PCDD/F found in sediment demonstrate the serious pollution of the lake by PCDD/F. Our study results indicates: the high concentration of PCDD/F in sediment can accumulate by aquatic organisms and humans through various pathways. Benthic invertebrate and aquatic plants with plenty of root system accumulate PCDD/F from sediment and water. Snail, mussel and shrimp take up PCDD/F from water and maintain the emission concentration patterns. But fish tend to selectively accumulate 2,3,7,8-substituted isomers from the aquatic environment. As the top predators, the fish-eating bird and pen-cultured duck are highly contaminated by PCDD/F due to the bioaccumulation via foodchain. The preferential residues of the 2,3,7,8-substituted PCDD/F in the fish, duck, fish eating bird and human milk may show the important biotransformation of PCDD/F. The high bioaccumulations in fish, pen-cultured duck, fish eating bird,their eggs and human milk are related the high concentration of PCDD/F in sediments. In Ya-Er Lake area, fish is the primary protein resource, the daily intake of PCDD/F for the local resident is calculated as 9.14 pg I-TEQ /kg body weight/day, which is considerably higher than the TDI of WHO for PCDD/F (1 pg I-TEQ/kg body weight/day).
Air Pollution
and Children's Health in Hong Kong Air
pollution is the most important environmental concern of people in Hong
Kong and a number of studies have been carried to look at the health
effects among children over the past ten years.
Risk Communication in Japan. During the period of rapid economic expansion after World War 2, the environmental contamination and nature destruction became major social problem in Japan. Of course, there had existed the environmental pollution before the war, general public believed that the black smoke from the factory was just the symbol of the industrialization. However, these development produced the outbreak of severe Industrial Pollution, such as Itaiitai disease(intoxication of Cadmium), Minamata disease(intoxication of Organic Mercury), Asthma and COLD in principal industrial zones. Japanese government, regarding this situation as Crisis for the first time, enacted the Basic Law for Environmental Pollution Control in 1967 and established the Environmental Agency in 1971.These situation and movement made the general public become increasingly hazard conscious. General public began to regard the environmental pollution as the Risk on their health. These policies, combined with efforts of both citizens and local government, corporate investment in pollution prevention and technological developments showed remarkable results by mid-1980s. However, our socioeconomic system and lifestyle have been changed. During these years of economic growth, mass production, mass consumption and mass disposal have become an even more an integral part of both Japan's socioeconomic activities and its way of life. Then new, complex and various environmental problems has occurred. Even the Basic Law for Environmental Pollution control ware drafted ton combat serious industrial pollution, it could no longer deal adequately with these new problems. So, Japanese government enacted new law, the Basic Environmental Law in 1993 and formulated the Basic Environmental Plan in 1994. Environmental Risk is defined that 'potentially harmful effects on human health and ecosystem resulting from the production, utilization and disposal of chemical substances,' in the Basic Environmental Law. Living in the convenient society, we can only reduce these risks and it is difficult to make quality standards. So, Environmental Risk Management must be done and to make correct judgement, we have to share the correct information about risk. Risk communication is the one of the methods to exchange information. In Japan, we have a kind of risk communication system, but it still has a lot of barriers. Effective risk communication is not something that comes naturally. It is a product of knowledge, preparation, training and practice.
Environmental
Threats to the Health of Children
In South Australia, as with
many developed areas of the world, asthma is a high- incidence ailment
and the major environmental-related health condition among children.
Other environmental health threats discussed in this presentation
included poor water quality in remote Aboriginal communities,
cyanobacterial toxins in potable water sources and recreational lakes,
and various circumstances of exposure to lead. Increasingly, in the
multicultural milieu which is a feature of Australian society,
exercising cultural sensitivity in risk communication is becoming
important.
Of these environmental
health concerns, the one for which effective risk communication and
community participation is best exemplified is the chronic lead exposure
in the lead-smelter town ofPt Pine. Over some 16 years, in conjunction
with a major effort to reduce general and point source lead exposures, a
concerted program of risk communication and risk 'ownership' has been
undertaken among the 15,000 residents. This has involved a number of
ongoing activities including the establishment of education programs in
the schools and pre-schools so that students and parents are
aware of the risks. A mascot
dinosaur cartoon character- 'Pea-bee' -has been created to spread the
message of risk and avoidance, and he appears in print foffi1 on a large
range of products suitable for young children. Community awareness is
also
maintained through regular advertising in the local media, the provision of qualified speakers at service clubs, and through offering free blood tests; current blood testing compliance in children over the age of 5 is 95%. These activities are coordinated and run from an on-site Environmental Health Centre which also houses a laboratory for conducting blood-lead tests and lead exposure-related research. The experience gained in risk communication in Pt Pine has been extremely useful in dealing with environmental health risks in other situations.
Fundamental Components of Risk Communication and Building Networks for
Communication Risk communication traditionally was thought to be the imparting of knowledge from professionals to the community about specific actions to take to reduce the risk of injury or harm. Today we know that risk communication is an interactive process that occurs between community and professionals and also includes policymakers, scientists, health care providers, as well as community members. The importance of involving multi-sectoral and multi-disciplinary stakeholders is illustrated through the example of the Children's Environmental Health Network, USA. Its mission is to promote a healthy environment and to protect the fetus and child from environmental hazards. This national organization has helped to create the field of children's environmental health. It has framed the policy and research agendas for the US, trained health care providers, and involved researchers, policymakers, health care professionals, and national organizations in this effort. (More information is available at http:// www. cehn. org) Fundamental components of risk communication for any topic or group include: What is the message? Is it the right message for the specific audience you are addressing?, Who is the audience-- know your target audience, what their needs and concerns are. Involve them in the risk communication process at all times. Who is the Messenger? Part of knowing the audience is knowing whom they will trust; have a messenger people can believe. What actions are you suggesting? What actions are you requesting that your audience take (i.e for community it may be to stop eating fish as frequently, for policymakers it may be to include children in regulations, for health care providers it may be to take an environmental health history)? What actions are you, the risk communicating community, willing to take to work alongside these different constituencies to address the problems?
RISK COMMUNICATION AND THE PROTECTION OF
CHILDREN’S ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH Effective communication on the risks of environmental hazards to children is critical to developing intervention and prevention programs. Risk communication is not a one-way transfer of information from the expert to the non-expert, but an interactive process of exchange of information and opinion among individuals, groups, and institutions. Risk messages must be accurate, credible, and understandable. In order for risk messages on the environmental threats to children not be misleading, they must be evidence-based and placed in an overall framework of priority concerns regarding children’s health. In order to obtain a realistic perspective of the major issues related to children’s environmental health in Pacific Basin countries, a questionnaire was sent to participants prior to the meeting. The following tables summarizes the responses from 34 participants representing 12 countries.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
This site contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner. |