Chapter 8 Learning Objectives: Environmental Health Safety

environment

the physical environment; which is divided into the unaltered, altered, and built environment

unaltered environment

the nautral environment, which includes things like radon and sunlight

altered environment

the impact of chemicals, radiation, and biological products that we introduce into the environment

built environment

includes all the impacts of the physical environment as a result of human construction

Air Quality Index (AQI)

an index created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to report daily air quality; it focuses on health effects that may be experienced within a few hours or days after breathing unhealthy air

risk assessment

aims to take into account the inherent danger, quantity, route, and timing of the exposure, as well as any hazards

hazards

indicated the inherent danger of an exposure

public health assessment

includes data on actual exposure in a community, addresses the risk in a specific locaiton, and the risks to large numbers of individuals and the population as a whole

interaction analysis (ecological assessment)

takes into accoun other effects of two or more exposures

multiplicative interaction

refers to interactions between exposures themselves so that the presence of both exposures results in an overall impact much greater than expected

health communities

creating a culture of health, which address a wide range of social issues

health equity

everyone should have the opportunity to persue the healthiest life possible

intentional injuries

injuries brought about on purpose—by intention—whether the injury is self-inflicted or meant for others

unintentional injuries

encompass injuries sustained in motor vehicle collisions, drownings, falls, fires, unintentional poisonings, and many other incidents

outbreak investigation

investigations that track and respond to outbreaks of acute disease

al-hazards approach

developed by the Department of Homeland Security, and uses the same approach to preparing for many types of disaters such as surveillance systems, communications systems, evacauations, and an organized healthcare response