Milwaukee Day Cares Indoor Air Quality Assessment and Educational Response Study
Milwaukee Day Cares Indoor Air Quality Assessment and Educational Response Study
This CTSI pilot study will assess for benefit of a community health worker or nursing student taught green cleaning curriculum (developed by the local asthma coalition) provided to Milwaukee County day care staff. Consumer grade indoor air quality monitors will be deployed before and after the educational intervention to objectively monitor changes as a result of the intervention. Surveys regarding changes in cleaning practices by day care staff will also be obtained to assess changes resulting from the intervention.
A research and community service partnership of the Medical College of Wisconsin, the Univ. of Wisconsin-Milwaukee School of Nursing and the non-profit asthma coalition Fight Asthma Milwaukee Allies (FAM) was developed to describe and improve health relevant air quality conditions within urban Milwaukee daycare environments. Daycare air quality and the ability of education to improve air quality, both within Milwaukee and elsewhere, has not been extensively studied nor addressed in Wisconsin state law to date.
This project aims to understand the levels of indoor organic pollution and fine particles in the air, as well as temperature and humidity with using inexpensive, consumer-grade, internet cloud enabled continuous indoor air quality (IAQ) monitors. These air quality variables are scientifically established important risk factors for both the development and exacerbation of asthma.
This project aims to train UWM Nursing students, FAM Allies volunteers and MCW staff to teach an established educational programing curriculum developed by FAM Allies to daycare staff. Daycare programs may be motivated to participate in study as the curriculum is approved continuing education credits for daycare staff members.
The FAM Allies curriculum will address understanding of the importance of asthma and IAQ with irritant reduction measures, and safer cleaning and pest-control techniques. Additionally, the program will review the importance of IAQ upon the lungs and review knowledge about asthma.
The proposal is a 4-month intervention in which the IAQ monitor will be placed in daycares to obtain baseline measurements. Half of the facilities will receive education at the second month allowing the team to assess before and after education air quality readings. The rest of the facilities will receive the same education at the third month. After 4 months, the devices will be removed from the facilities and results in aggregate will be shared with the daycare.
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