Browsing by Author "Richardson, Molly B."
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- A community-engaged approach to understanding environmental health concerns and solutions in urban and rural communitiesWang, Suwei; Richardson, Molly B.; Evans, Mary B.; Johnson, Ethel; Threadgill-Matthews, Sheryl; Tyson, Sheila; White, Katherine L.; Gohlke, Julia M. (2021-09-24)Background Focus groups and workshops can be used to gain insights into the persistence of and potential solutions for environmental health priorities in underserved areas. The objective of this study was to characterize focus group and workshop outcomes of a community-academic partnership focused on addressing environmental health priorities in an urban and a rural location in Alabama between 2012 and 2019. Methods Six focus groups were conducted in 2016 with 60 participants from the City of Birmingham (urban) and 51 participants from Wilcox County (rural), Alabama to discuss solutions for identified environmental health priorities based on previous focus group results in 2012. Recorded focus groups were transcribed and analyzed using the grounded theory approach. Four follow-up workshops that included written survey instruments were conducted to further explore identified priorities and determine whether the priorities change over time in the same urban (68 participants) and rural (72 participants) locations in 2018 and 2019. Results Consistent with focus groups in 2012, all six focus groups in 2016 in Birmingham identified abandoned houses as the primary environmental priority. Four groups listed attending city council meetings, contacting government agencies and reporting issues as individual-level solutions. Identified city-level solutions included city-led confiscation, tearing down and transferring of abandoned property ownership. In Wilcox County, all six groups agreed the top priority was drinking water quality, consistent with results in 2012. While the priority was different in Birmingham versus Wilcox County, the top identified reason for problem persistence was similar, namely unresponsive authorities. Additionally, individual-level solutions identified by Wilcox County focus groups were similar to Birmingham, including contacting and pressuring agencies and developing petitions and protesting to raise awareness, while local policy-level solutions identified in Wilcox County included government-led provision of grants to improve septic systems, and transparency in allocation of funds. Workshops in 2018 and 2019 further emphasized water quality as the top priority in Wilcox County, while participants in Birmingham transitioned from abandoned houses as a top priority in 2018 to drinking water quality as a new priority in 2019. Conclusions Applying a community-engaged approach in both urban and rural locations provided better understanding of the unique opportunities and challenges for identifying potential interventions for environmental health priorities in both locations. Results can help inform future efforts to address locally defined environmental health issues and solutions.
- Effect of an Additional 30 Minutes Spent Outdoors during Summer on Daily Steps and Individually Experienced Heat IndexWang, Suwei; Richardson, Molly B.; Wu, Connor Y. H.; Zaitchik, Benjamin F.; Gohlke, Julia M. (MDPI, 2020-10-17)Spending time outdoors is associated with increased physical activity; however, high ambient temperature/humidity, together with built environment features in urban versus rural environments, may influence physical activity. We conducted an intervention trial with 89 urban and 88 rural participants performing normal activities on Days 1–2 (baseline) and spending an additional 30 min outdoors on Days 3–7 (intervention) in the summer. Participants wore a pedometer with real-time visual feedback to track daily steps taken and a thermometer clipped to their shoe to track temperatures experienced individually. Hygrometer–thermometers were deployed in participants’ neighborhoods to collect finer resolution ambient heat indexes in addition to regional weather station measurements. Using linear mixed effects models and adjusting for ambient conditions and individual-level factors, participants on average walked 637 (95%CI (83, 1192)) more steps and had a 0.59 °C (95%CI (0.30, 0.88)) lower daily mean individually experienced heat index during intervention days compared to baseline days. The intervention benefit of increased physical activity was greater in rural residents who were less active at baseline, compared to urban residents. Our results suggest adding a small amount of additional time outdoors may improve physical activity without increasing participants’ heat exposure, even during summer in a humid subtropical climate.
- Methods for Estimating Wet Bulb Globe Temperature From Remote and Low-Cost Data: A Comparative Study in Central AlabamaCarter, Anabel W.; Zaitchik, Benjamin F.; Gohlke, Julia M.; Wang, Suwei; Richardson, Molly B. (2020-05)Heat stress is a significant health concern that can lead to illness, injury, and mortality. The wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT) index is one method for monitoring environmental heat risk. Generally, WBGT is estimated using a heat stress monitor that includes sensors capable of measuring ambient, wet bulb, and black globe temperature, and these measurements are combined to calculate WBGT. However, this method can be expensive, time consuming, and requires careful attention to ensure accurate and repeatable data. Therefore, researchers have attempted to use standard meteorological measurements, using single data sources as an input (e.g., weather stations) to calculate WBGT. Building on these efforts, we apply data from a variety of sources to calculate WBGT, understand the accuracy of our estimated equation, and compare the performance of different sources of input data. To do this, WBGT measurements were collected from Kestrel 5400 Heat Stress Trackers installed in three locations in Alabama. Data were also drawn from local weather stations, North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS), and low cost iButton hygrometers. We applied previously published equations for estimating natural wet bulb temperature, globe temperature, and WBGT to these diverse data sources. Correlation results showed that WBGT estimates derived from all proxy data sources-weather station, weather station/iButton, NLDAS, NLDAS/iButton-were statistically indistinguishable from each other, or from the Kestrel measurements, at two of the three sites. However, at the same two sites, the addition of iButtons significantly reduced root mean square error and bias compared to other methods. Plain Language Summary Heat stress is a buildup of body heat that can lead to illness, injury, or death. One method for estimating heat stress is an index called wet bulb globe temperature (WBGT). The index is usually measured with a monitor that records three types of temperature measurements and combines them. However, this method can be expensive, time consuming, and requires careful attention. Therefore, researchers have tried to use standard measurements such as wind speed, temperature, humidity, etc., to calculate WBGT. Building on these efforts, we wanted to determine if it was possible to accurately calculate WBGT with a variety of inexpensive data sources in central Alabama. We used previously published equations to estimate WBGT. Results showed that all proxy methods accurately estimated WBGT in two Alabama locations, but that using local measurements did change estimates of the number of potentially dangerous heat episodes relative to estimates that rely on remote sources of weather data. The ability to use easily accessible measurements could be a powerful tool for studies and interventions related to heat stress.