Use C-FERST with the Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health
What is the PACE-EH Guidebook?
The Protocol
ProtocolA series of formal steps for conducting a test. for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health (PACE-EH) Guidebook is designed to help communities systematically conduct and act on an assessment of environmental health status in their localities. The methodology takes the user through a community-based process for
- Characterizing and evaluating local environmental health conditions and concerns
- Identifying populations at riskriskIn the context of human health, the probability of injury, disease, or death from exposure to a chemical agent or a mixture of chemicals. In quantitative terms, risk is expressed as values ranging from zero (representing the certainty that harm will not occur) to one (representing the certainty that harm will occur). of exposureexposureHuman contact with environmental contaminants in media including air, water, soil, and food. to environmental hazards
- Identifying and collecting meaningful environmental health data
- Setting priorities for local action to address environmental health problems
Use C-FERST with the PACE-EH Guidebook
The EPA CARE Program was a key partner in developing C-FERST. Many CARE grantees have used the PACE-EH Guidebook, along with the CARE Roadmap and the CARE Resource Guide, to assist with community assessment. C-FERST has tools and information that can help you with tasks in the PACE-EH Guidebook:
13 Tasks of PACE-EH
Task 1: Determine Community Capacity
- Specify the resources, skills and capacities needed for the assessment
- Specify the available resources, skills and capacities
- Review possibilities for collaboration
- Determine ability to carry out the assessment
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Partners Table
Use the partners table in C-FERST to record information about your partnership’s available resources, skills and capacities.
Task 2: Define and Characterize the Community
- Define the community
- Describe the community’s characteristics, composition, organization and leadership
- Refine the definition of the community as needed
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Visualize data specific to your community. - Community Data Table
Find information on community environmental and demographic characteristics in the Community Data Table.
Task 3: Assemble a Community-based Environmental Health Assessment Team
- Clarify expectations of team members
- Identify and invite individuals to help design and carry out the assessment
- Determine a governing structure, decision-making structure and ground rules
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Partners Table
As you assemble your team, you can use the Partners Table in C-FERST to record information about members, such as roles and responsibilities.
Task 4: Define the Goals, Objectives and Scope of the Assessment
- Establish goals and objectives for the assessment
- Describe the vision that will guide the process
- Describe the scope of issues to be addressed by the assessment
- Define key terms
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Visualize data specific to your community goals. - Community Data Table
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns. - Environmental Issue Profiles
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns to guide the scope of issues to be addressed by the assessment.
Task 5: Generate a List of Environmental Health Issues
- Evaluate and select data-gathering method(s)
- Collect data on community concerns
- Collect data on community knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and perceptions
- Create a manageable list of issues
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Environmental Measurement Methods
Select methods for measuring local environmental conditions such as air quality and indoor air pollution. - Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns. - Community Data Table
See data on community environmental and health concerns. - Environmental Issue Profiles
Read and learn about community environmental and health concerns.
Task 6: Analyze the Issues with a Systems Framework
- Understand the framework
- Identify the connections among health status, affected populations, exposure factors, environmental agents/conditions, contributing factors and behaviors and public health protection factors for selected environmental health issues
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Use Environmental Issue Profiles to gather information about sources, environmental conditions and other information for select environmental and health issues.
Task 7: Develop Locally Appropriate Indicators
- Develop list of potential indicators
- Identify key indicators based on selected criteria
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Find community environmental and demographic characteristics in the Maps that could be used as indicators. - Community Data Table
Find community environmental and demographic characteristics in the Community Data Table that could be used as indicators. - Environmental Measurement Methods
Explore methods for monitoring potential environmental indicators such as air quality and indoor air pollution.
Task 8: Select Standards Against Which Local Status Can be Compared
- Identify externally driven standards
- Agree upon locally appropriate standards
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Environmental Issue Profiles for some regulated environmental pollutants contain information about regulatory standards. - Community Data Table
The Community Data Table allows you to compare certain environmental indicators to county, state and national estimates.
Task 9: Create Issue Profiles
- Adopt a standardized format for organizing information
- Gather information
- Collect data for locally developed indicators
- Develop a summary statement
Resources for this step:
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Environmental Issue Profiles are an example of a format for organizing information for a set of issues identified by other communities. - Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns. - Community Data Table
Use the Community Data Table to gather information about environmental sources and estimated concentrations, exposures and risks. - Environmental Measurement Methods
Find a selection of methods for collecting local data.
Task 10: Rank Issues
- Determine the purpose of ranking
- Decide on ranking criteria
- Select a method for ranking
- Rank the issues
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns. - Community Data Table
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns. - Environmental Issue Profiles
Search through other resources regarding community environmental and health concerns.
Task 11: Set Priorities for Action
- Determine local priority-setting criteria
- Select a method for prioritizing
- Determine priorities
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Exposure and Risk Reduction Options and Community Projects
Links to information on exposure and risk reduction options, and strategies that other communities have used to address issues.
Task 12: Develop an Action Plan
- Develop goals and objectives
- Identify possible interventions and prevention activities
- Identify community assets
- Identify potential barriers
- Select an intervention(s)/activity(ies)
- Identify contributing factors
- Determine resource needs
- Identify potential partners
- Provide training
- Develop timeframe
- Determine measures of success
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Exposure and Risk Reduction Options and Community Projects
Links to information on exposure and risk reduction options and strategies that other communities have used to address issues.
Task 13: Evaluate Progress and Plan for the Future
- Agree on the questions to be answered by the evaluation
- Evaluate the success of the assessment process
- Begin preparations for ongoing community-based environmental health assessment activities
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns to add to the maps. - Community Data Table
C-FERST data on community environmental and health concerns can be revisited over time to evaluate progress. Local data can also be entered in C-FERST to compare over time.