Journal of Environmental Health

Pathogen growth caused by improper or slow cooling of hot foods was a contributing factor in 504 of restaurant- and deli-related outbreaks in the U.S. from 1998-2008. Little is known, however, about restaurant cooling practices. To fill this gap, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Environmental Health Specialists Network (EHS-Net) conducted an observational study to identify and understand factors that might determine which methods restaurants follow to rapidly cool food. These methods include refrigerating food at ≤41 °F, at shallow depths, and in containers that are ventilated, unstacked, and have space around them...

NEHA strives to provide up-to-date and relevant information on environmental health and to build partnerships in the profession. In pursuit of these goals, we feature this column on environmental health services from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in every issue of the Journal . In these columns, authors from CDC's Water, Food, and Environmental Health Services Branch, as well as guest authors, will share insights and information about environmental health programs, trends, issues, and resources...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

The National Environmental Health Association is publishing a three-part series that highlights collaboration and partnerships with the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) and redevelopment stakeholders to promote environmental health and land reuse as environmental and public health practices. This series will serve as a guide for identifying new and existing resources that can be adopted at the local environmental health level to safely reuse environmentally impacted land to improve community health outcomes...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

As part of our continued effort to highlight innovative approaches to improve the health and environment of communities, the Journal is pleased to publish a bimonthly column from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ATSDR serves the public by using the best science, taking responsive public health actions, and providing trusted health information to prevent harmful exposures and diseases related to toxic substances. The purpose of this column is to inform readers of ATSDR's activities and initiatives to better understand the relationship between exposure to hazardous substances in the environment, its impact on human health, and how to protect public health...

Environmental health (EH) professionals provide critical services and respond to complex and multifaceted public health threats. The role of these professionals is continually re-emphasized by emergencies requiring rapid and effective responses to address environmental issues and ensure protection of the public's health. Given the prominence of the EH profession within the public health framework, assessing the governmental health department workforce, practice, and current and future challenges is crucial to ensure EH professionals are fully equipped and prepared to protect the nation's health...

Many local health departments (LHDs) across the country coordinate with their service areas on environmental health or land reuse. The Brownfields & Reuse Opportunity Working Group (BROWN) is a multipartner land reuse stakeholder network that includes member representatives from state and local health agencies, federal agencies, environmental consultants, environmental health professionals, and academia. In 2015, BROWN provided input on five Environmental Health Resources Self Learning Modules (Epidemiology, Risk Assessment, Risk Communications, Land Reuse Sites, and Toxicology) that the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) was developing...

Environmental health specialists often perform environmental assessments (EAs) when a suspected or confirmed foodborne illness outbreak is linked to a food establishment. Information from EAs helps officials determine the cause of the outbreak and develop strategies to prevent future outbreaks; however, EAs are not always conducted. To determine facilitators and barriers to conducting EAs, we analyzed open-ended responses reported to the National Environmental Assessment Reporting System about these assessments...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

NEHA strives to provide up-to-date and relevant information on environmental health and to build partnerships in the profession. In pursuit of these goals, we feature this column on environmental health services from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in every issue of the Journal . In these columns, authors from CDC's Water, Food, and Environmental Health Services Branch, as well as guest authors, will share insights and information about environmental health programs, trends, issues, and resources...

NEHA strives to provide up-to-date and relevant information on environmental health and to build partnerships in the profession. In pursuit of these goals, we feature this column on environmental health services from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in every issue of the Journal . In these columns, authors from CDC's Water, Food, and Environmental Health Services Branch, as well as guest authors, will share insights and information about environmental health programs, trends, issues, and resources...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

As part of our continued effort to highlight innovative approaches to improve the health and environment of communities, the Journal is pleased to publish a bimonthly column from the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR) at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). ATSDR serves the public by using the best science, taking responsive public health actions, and providing trusted health information to prevent harmful exposures and diseases related to toxic substances. The purpose of this column is to inform readers of ATSDR's activities and initiatives to better understand the relationship between exposure to hazardous substances in the environment, its impact on human health, and how to protect public health...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

The main objective of this research was to ascertain the association between organizational characteristics of local health departments (LHDs) and environmental health (EH) services rendered in the community. Data used for the analysis were collected from LHDs by the National Association of County and City Health Officials for its 2013 national profile study of LHDs. We analyzed the data during 2016. Apart from understanding basic characteristics of LHDs in the nation, we introduced new measures of these characteristics, including "EH full-time equivalents" per 100,000 population and "other revenue" (revenues from fees and fines) per capita...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

We investigated an outbreak of eight Legionnaires' disease cases among persons living in an urban residential community of 60,000 people. Possible environmental sources included two active cooling towers (air-conditioning units for large buildings) <1 km from patient residences, a market misting system, a community-wide water system used for heating and cooling, and potable water. To support a timely public health response, we used real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) to identify Legionella DNA in environmental samples within hours of specimen collection...