Introduction: Community Description
The demography picked is Hammington Junior High School, a community high school with 200 pupils aged between 12 and 16 years. In this neighborhood, the epidemiology of the chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is at a rate of 4 for every 15 inhabitants. Therefore, these cases are high because of the excessive pollution within the school community area.
Problem Description
In many communities, solid fuel burning is a significant source of air pollution. COPD sufferers and environmental activists should be aware of the air quality and take additional precautions, such as limiting outside time and using face masks, to avoid the harmful consequences of air pollution. Utilizing cleaner fuels and stoves with improved combustion and exhaust systems are the most efficient ways to reduce indoor pollution. When possible, air purifiers that will enhance the air quality should be employed.
Healthy versus COPD
The effects of air pollution on human health are primarily dependent on the pollutants, their components, and the sources of the pollution. These elements differ from country to country, season to season, and era to era.
Overview Of the Problem and Relevant Data
Being located in close proximity to a cement producing plant, the school is exposed to radiation from a variety of sources. When there is not enough outside air to dilute and eliminate poisons from the air, pollutant concentrations in the school environment rise, causing health problems. The temperature and humidity of the surrounding environment, for example, have an impact on the amounts of specific pollutants in the air. In terms of classification, they fall into two primary categories: biological pollutants and chemical pollutants. At least 4 out of every 15 students at Hammington Junior Secondary School have been affected by this.
Air Quality Flag Program Description
The flags are raised every day under the Air Quality Flag Program to signal poor air quality, which is a straightforward process. The five AQI levels are represented by five different colors on the banner: green, yellow, orange, and red/purple. This knowledge should be included in the school’s physical activities in order to reduce exposure to air pollution. Therefore, the school will restrict outdoor activities on days with a higher level of air pollution to mitigate the risks of COPD. Encourage kids to participate in physical activity while at the same time exposing them to high pollution levels by providing a wide range of educational and outreach resources, such as exercise books for children and an air quality lesson plan. If a facility requires more than one publication, the National Center for Environmental Publications (NCEP) can provide complimentary copies of many publications if necessary.
Use
This collection includes five flags, each unique color: It is acceptable to use 5-by-3-foot pennant flags. The most effective flags are those that are unadorned and simple. The institution should promote the Flag Program by educating students and parents about it and appointing 1-2 learners to act as program leaders. These methods should alert the school and the surrounding area about the incident.
Outcomes
The Environmental Protection Agency will celebrate one person for their efforts to improve the health and well-being of students, employees, and members of the community via environmental education. People suffering from COPD have difficulty breathing as a result of the chronic nature of the condition. In addition to other environmental improvements, the Air Quality Flag Program will help to reduce long-term lung sickness in children. Thus, by eliminating COPD and other chronic diseases from the school’s student body and community, the school will be able to significantly increase the lifespan of its students and community members.
Community Resource
Despite several requests, neither the American Thoracic Society (ATS) nor the World Health Organization (WHO) has issued comprehensive global guidelines for the treatment of COPD (Seam et al., 2020). However, the Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (2020) provides recommendations for healthcare specialists. In turn, Hammington Junior High School might create its own community resource based on the guidelines to prevent the spread of COPD. These resources include pamphlets and banners for society. Because of this, federal health programs, healthcare practitioners’ adoption, and adherence recommendations vary, and outside specialists’ acknowledgment of practice is limited.
Implications for Practice
Depending on the person’s sensitivity, COPD and allergies may also be exacerbated by diesel exhaust from school buses and other vehicles (Viskup et al., 2019). Diesel contains high density levels of Carbon, Iron, and other chemicals, which can be dangerous of nearby people, particularly if the diesel engines are not properly maintained (Viskup et al., 2019). Therefore, experts suggest implementing additional measures of diesel exhaust control to mitigate the risks of air pollution. Implementing the Air Quality Flag Program into the organization impacts population health outcomes of vulnerable populations by influencing a group of students and community members by keeping them healthy and active. Every day, students in schools are exposed to a wide range of allergies. These issues may be challenging to discover for people concerned about their home or office air quality (Hayes, 2017). When it comes to chronic illness-related absences from school in this age range, people who already suffer from COPD may have their symptoms worsen if they are exposed to household allergens such as dust mites, bugs, and mold.
Conclusion
A more inclusive strategy can be achieved due to the expansion and expansion of current pledges. The school needs to break away from the traditional roles of public health organizations and the health care delivery system in these efforts. The students have previously established the necessity for an effective public health system that spans the entire community. There have been significant changes, systemic obstacles, and challenges to societal norms and influences in the quest to ensure national health. Because of this, Hammington community health policy should be re-examined, as it has traditionally been based on personal health services and biological research that helps the individual.
References
AirNow. (n.d.). Air Quality Flag program.
Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease. (2020). Pocket guide to COPD diagnosis, management, and prevention.
Hayes, E. (2017). Challenging the air quality discourse – People create pollution not technology. Clean Air Journal, 27(1), 12-24.
Rudrax Chest Clinic. (2022). COPD – Rudrax chest clinic. Rudrax Chest Clinic – Dr. Dipak Viradia.
Seam, N., Burkart, K. M., & Kritek, P. A. (2020). Introducing ATS scholar, the American Thoracic Society education journal.ATS Scholar, 1(1), 1-4.
Viskup, R., Wolf, C., & Baumgartner, W. (2019). Laser induced breakdown spectroscopy of diesel particulate matter exhaust emissions generated from on road diesel engine: Light duty vehicles.Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Photonics, Optics and Laser Technology, 1(2), 1-14.