About the Children's Health Project

Strengthening the Capacity of Health Professionals
Serving Minority and Low-Income Communities to Better Identify, Manage, and Prevent Environmental Health Risks

This project focuses on providing health professionals who serve low-income, immigrant/refugee and minority children in small cities and rural areas in New England with the knowledge and skills to better identify, manage, and prevent environmental health risks, a population that is generally underserved by children’s environmental health capacity building efforts although it suffers disproportionately from the impacts of environmental contaminants. The University of Massachusetts Lowell (UML) School of Health and Environment, in collaboration with the Center for Family, Work, and Community and the Lowell Center for Sustainable Production has a long history of education and training of health professionals, occupational and environmental specialists, particularly at the community level. UML will work closely with the primary health care providers for such communities, including community health centers, community health educators, school nurses, and emergency department staff. UML will also target public health nurses as they have an increasingly important role in identification and prevention of environmental risks at the community level. The targeted focus on New England is important since environmental health infrastructure is developed locally and regionally rather than nationally. UML received a $150,000 grant from the Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Children's Health Protection to fund this initiative.