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Health Care Provider Resources
EPA supports efforts to expand the integration of environmental health in to health
care provider education and practice. The public looks more and more to their
primary health care providers to provide environmental health information, including
diagnosis, treatment, and counseling on prevention strategies. However, these
providers are often not equipped with the specific knowledge needed to effectively
assist their patients in addressing environmental health issues.
Many federal agencies are engaged in developing partnerships with the health care community to integrate their agency's environmental health messages into educational and practice settings.
Rocky Mountain Region Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit
The Rocky Mountain Region Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU) has recently opened a toll-free, 24-hour, seven-day-a-week hotline designed for parents, kids, teachers and care providers. Callers can ask questions on environmental health concerns such as lead and other heavy metals, pesticides, diesel exhaust, molds and bacteria. Calls to the hotline are answered by nurses and pharmacists trained to evaluate environmental hazards.
They ask callers a series of questions about suspected exposures and symptoms
to help evaluate the potential hazard. They can then offer preliminary advice
and education to callers and send their environmental exposure assessments to
the expert panel of PEHSU physicians, who can offer further advice and physician
referrals if necessary. The toll-free phone number for the Rocky Mountain PEHSU
is 1-877-800-5554.
The Rocky Mountain PEHSU is a joint collaboration of Denver Health, National Jewish Medical and Research Center and the Rocky Mountain Poison and Drug Center. PEHSU serves the children of Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana, North Dakota & South Dakota. PEHSU is funded by a grant from the Association of Occupational and Environmental Clinics (AOEC) through funding from the ATSDR (Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry).
Online Resources for Health Care Providers
EPA's Office of Children's Health Protection has developed a list of resources for health
care providers free-of-charge online. It includes information on the following
topics in pediatric environmental health: General Information, Air Quality Asthma,
Lead, Mercury, Mold, Pesticides, Water.
To access this information please visit the Office of Children's Health Protection's Web site.
