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HUD Funded Program in Greater Cleveland ensures Families Lead Healthier Lives
Cleveland: Gloria Johnson who relocated to Cleveland from California a few years ago found her home on the internet. This was a home she believed was both comfortable for her family and affordable, but what followed was a homeowner’s nightmare.
Soon after moving into her home, she had to rush her asthmatic child to the emergency room due to an attack caused by pesticide exposure after she hired a pest control operator to spray her home for bugs. Along with the bugs, the house had mold, a leaky roof, the porch floor was caving in and the house had other structural issues.
The Johnsons were enrolled by their family physician in the Healthy Homes and Patients Program funded by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The program, in its 6th year is a partner of the Healthy Homes Advisory Council of Greater Cleveland (HHAC) and works with families to ensure healthy and safe living environments while preventing childhood lead poisoning, and exposure to other environmental health hazards that can aggravate asthma conditions in children and the elderly.
The Johnson’s physician accompanied the Healthy Housing Specialist as he went through the home with a detailed checklist pointing out health and safety hazards, and suggesting interventions. Environmental Health Watch (EHW), also an HHAC partner agency delivered the services, provided the family with health and safety items, conducted low-level building interventions, and made referrals for higher-level interventions for the home and family. In addition, the Johnsons were able to receive services such as plumbing repair, a new water heater and furnace, home weatherization, and new gutters.
Today, the Johnson Family feels confident about living in their home and their children are healthier and safe.
“This program is important because it offers corrective interventions including changing family behavior such as pest management control,” says Dorr G. Dearborn, Ph.D., M.D., Professor and Chair of the Department of Environmental Health Sciences at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine.
The Healthy Homes Advisory Council (HHAC) of Greater Cleveland hosts its 6th Annual Symposium: Building on the Basics: Transforming our Cities to Affordable, Green and Healthy Communities on Friday, June 10, 2011 at 7:30am-1:00pm at the Cleveland Museum of Natural History.
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