Technical Assistance and Training Projects
-Active-

Designing and Administering Lead Hazard Control Grant Programs: Lessons Learned Update
CDC National Healthy Homes Training Center
CDC National Lead Poisoning Prevention Training Center
Healthy Rebuilding Demonstration Project in New Orleans
Technical Assistance and Strategic Planning Initiative
EPA Building Public Health Professional Capacity
IPM Education Program
Delivery of a Radon Education Program through the National Healthy Homes Training Center and Network

Designing and Administering Lead Hazard Control Grant Programs: Lessons Learned Update - Evaluating Lessons Learned from HUD Lead Hazard Control Grantees

In 1997, the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH) published "Designing and Administering Lead Hazard Control Programs: Lessons Learned To Date" to capture what HUD grantees had learned about establishing and administering their programs. The report was intended to be a "work in progress" (NCHH, 1997). In 2004, Howard University Center for Urban Progress (HUCUP) contracted with NCHH to update the 1997 report. The 2006 "Designing and Administering Lead Hazard Control Programs: Lessons Learned Update" report emphasizes issues affecting lead hazard control programs with a primary prevention focus This report is part of a larger HUD-funded Lead Technical Study being undertaken by Howard University to support outreach, education, and prevention in Washington, D.C. through community-based participatory research approach.
Please click here for more information on this project and to download the final report

CDC National Healthy Homes Training Center

The National Center for Healthy Housing operates the National Healthy Homes Training Center and Network through a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and support from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The Training Center provides training through its network of partners around the country.

The target audiences for the training are environmental health practitioners, public health nurses, housing professionals, community outreach workers, tribal environmental health officials, and leaders of community-based organizations. The overall goals of the training are to:(1) Provide training for public health and housing practitioners in the assessment and treatment of housing related health hazards, with a focus on practical and cost-effective methods, (2) Promote cross training of public health and housing practitioners, (3) Create a forum for the exchange of practical guidance about healthy housing strategies among federal, state, tribal and local agency staff, (4) Develop a mechanism for the ongoing introduction of new research findings into public health training and practice, and (5) Identify and optimize opportunities for networking, collaboration and partnerships.

Since 2005, the Training Center has (1) Trained close to 2,000 individuals, (2) Expanded from seven partners to nearly 20 partners, (3) Offered its flagship course, Essentials for Healthy Homes Practitioners more than 50 times, (4) Piloted numerous new courses including launching a healthy homes program, healthy homes for health promoters (in both English and Spanish), healthy homes for community-based organizations, and Integrated Pest Management for multi-family housing and indoor environments, (5) Developed a healthy homes awareness video, (6) Launched a Healthy Homes Clearinghouse for online information about healthy homes, Launched an on-line training for nurses – the Pediatric Environmental Home Assessment training, and Launched a new Healthy Homes Specialist credential with the National Environmental Health Association.

For more information, please contact Tom Neltner at tneltner@nchh.info or 443-539-4160.

CDC National Lead Poisoning Prevention Training Center

Under contract to CDC, Healthy Housing Solutions, NCHH's wholly owned for-profit subsidiary, developed the curricula and training materials, and secured seven nationally known plenary speakers and eight highly qualified faculty members for CDC's five-day National Lead Poisoning Prevention Training Center. The training is being offered to CDC-funded state and city Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (CLPPP) employees who are new to their programs and/or to lead poisoning prevention. The four training track topics, with six modules in each, include Primary Prevention, Program Management, Case Management, and Data and Surveillance. Three training sessions were presented by Solutions in 2005, with up to 75 students attending each session. Future training sessions, to possibly include more advanced course offerings, are being planned for 2006. For more information, please contact Jack Anderson at janderson@centerforhealthyhousing.org

Healthy Rebuilding Demonstration Project in New Orleans

Enterprise, Neighborhood Housing Services of New Orleans, and NCHH are carrying out a demonstration project to provide critical information about the cost of and best approaches for decontaminating homes that were damaged by flooding from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. The project team selected three homes, owned by low- or moderate-income families, that experienced between two to six feet of water above the first floor. NCHH is overseeing the health aspects of the progrram, including before-and-after environmental testing, worker protection issues, and documentation of the costs and procedures. A committee of healthy housing experts and scientists is providing advice regarding the demolition, decontamination, and worker protection approaches that the project team is using. Following the completion of the demonstration, the project team will publish a "how-to" guide and a video for contractors, community-based housing organizations, homeowners, and tradespeople who are involved in the cleanup and rebuilding efforts. For more information, please click here.

Technical Assistance and Strategic Planning Initiative

NCHH is committed to achieving the national goal of eliminating childhood lead poisoning by 2010. We recognize that this battle is largely being fought by state and local agencies and community-based organizations. In 2003, NCHH launched a for-profit subsidiary, Healthy Housing Solutions, Inc. to assist states and localities in the development of strategic plans and programs for eliminating childhood lead poisoning. While NCHH continues to be active at the national level on lead poisoning policy issues, Solutions' staff provide critical implementation assistance to communities across the country. For more information, please click here

EPA Building Public Health Professional Capacity

NCHH, with funding from EPA will develop trainings for public health nurses, especially visiting nurses who perform home visits. Visiting nurses play a key role in achieving healthy housing as they are already in the home and can assess both the patient and environmental health hazards in the home. NCHH will carry out twelve trainings in conjunction with its Healthy Homes Training Center network partners: Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health, University of Washington University of Cincinnati, and Boston University.

IPM Education Program

A pilot program at the Charlestown public housing development in Boston trained residents as IPM Educators, working in partnership with the development manager and the IPM contractor. The results showed significant improvements in sanitation and significant reduction in cockroaches. NCHH will develop a three-part training program for three New England housing authorities to transform their pest management processes into safer, more effective pest control. The goals are to (1) Reduce exposure to pests and pesticide use in low-income, multifamily properties, (2) Improve resident knowledge and participation, satisfaction and quality of life, and (3) Demonstrate the cost-effectiveness of IPM in multifamily housing. Residents and property managers will be trained together so they receive the same message and hear about how to jointly solve problems. The pilot program will take place in Boston, Massachusetts; Hartford, Connecticut; and Providence, Rhode Island.

Delivery of a Radon Education Program through the National Healthy Homes Training Center and Network

NCHH, with funding from the EPA, is preparing and delivering two radon education programs. The first course, delivered under NCHH's existing National Healthy Homes Training Center and Network, will teach public health and environmental practitioners (e.g., public health nurses, sanitarians) about the significance of radon as a serious public health problem, how to test for radon, and how to reduce exposure through proven, cost-effective mitigation techniques.  The second course will teach housing professionals who manage contractors or prepare specifications to build or rehabilitate homes about radon health hazards and about construction techniques for radon reduction and treatment.  Courses are currently being developed, with course delivery expected to begin in late 2005.

Research and Evaluation (active projects)
Research and Evaluation (completed projects)
Training and Technical Assistance (completed projects)
Policy
Demonstration

Research and Evaluation
(Active Projects)

Research and Evaluation
(Completed Projects)

Training and Technical Assistance
(Active Projects)

Training and Technical Assistance
(Completed Projects)

Demonstration

Policy