Go for the GLO.

In Rochester, New York, where most of the housing stock was built before 1940, childhood lead poisoning rates in many neighborhoods surpass 35%. Health professionals consider childhood lead poisoning to be the greatest environmental health risk in the county, especially for children who live in low-income urban neighborhoods such as the Orchard Street community. Now some Rochester children at risk for lead poisoning are getting help from the Get the Lead Out of Orchard Street Community Houses and Kids (GLO) project.

GLO is coordinated by the Community Outreach and Education Program (COEP) at the University of Rochester Medical Center in collaboration with the Orchard Street Community Health Center (OSCHC), the Jay and Orchard Street Neighborhood Association, the Monroe County Department of Health, and the City of Rochester. The OSCHC initiated GLO in 2002 with the goal of preventing lead poisoning in children living in that community by inspecting homes of at-risk children, educating parents on how to protect their children from lead exposures, and encouraging landlords to fix lead hazards. The COEP conducts surveys with participating families, develops and delivers informational materials for parents and property owners on lead hazards, trains parents in lead-safe cleaning practices, and provides expertise in public outreach, education, and evaluation strategies.

Project members will eventually investigate the homes of 100 families with children who are patients at the OSCHC. Home assessments are initiated through well-child checkups, which has proven to be an effective strategy, with around a 90% participation rate. The project is unique in that it is preventive: most of the children involved do not yet have elevated blood lead, although they may live in homes where hazards are present. For those homes where lead hazards are found, GLO provides advocacy and support to tenants in interactions with property owners, and encourages property owners to apply for city and county funds to support lead remediation.

A key to GLO's educational efforts was creating a "lead lab" in an empty house with lead hazards typical of homes in the neighborhood. For two months, project members demonstrated to families, property owners, and local policy makers various low-cost techniques for safe lead cleanup, lead hazard reduction, and safe work practices. The lead lab was so effective in reaching diverse audiences that the city plans to replicate it in another neighborhood in Rochester.