Publications by authors named "Kevin U Stephens"
Objectives: To review how disasters introduce unique challenges to conducting population-based research and community-based participatory research (CBPR).
Methods: From 2007-2009, we conducted the Head-off Environmental Asthma in Louisiana (HEAL) Study in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in a Gulf Coast community facing an unprecedented triple burden: Katrina's and other disasters' impact on the environment and health, historic health disparities, and persistent environmental health threats.
Results: The unique triple burden influenced every research component; still, most existing CBPR principles were applicable, even though full adherence was not always feasible and additional tailored principles govern postdisaster settings.
Article Synopsis
- The HEAL intervention in New Orleans targeted asthma counseling for children aged 4-12 with severe asthma, aiming to address challenges in a post-disaster environment.
- Participants received home assessments and personalized counseling, leading to significant improvements in treatment adherence and healthcare utilization.
- The study highlighted that adapting intervention strategies to local needs improved clinical outcomes and could inform future asthma management in underserved areas.
Article Synopsis
- The HEAL study aimed to investigate the link between post-Hurricane Katrina environmental factors and childhood asthma in New Orleans, while also implementing an intervention to help reduce home allergens.
- Participants included 182 children aged 4-12 with moderate-to-severe asthma, with a significant portion being African American and from low-income households, who experienced high levels of symptoms and emergency visits prior to the study.
- The study faced substantial challenges due to the aftermath of the hurricane but successfully recruited participants and collected high-quality data, which will enhance understanding of asthma and allergen interactions.
Background: Rain and flooding from Hurricane Katrina resulted in widespread growth of mold and bacteria and production of allergens in New Orleans, Louisiana, which may have led to increased exposures and morbidity in children with asthma.
Objectives: The goal of the Head-off Environmental Asthma in Louisiana (HEAL) study was to characterize post-Katrina exposures to mold and allergens in children with asthma.
Methods: The homes of 182 children with asthma in New Orleans and surrounding parishes were evaluated by visual inspection, temperature and moisture measurements, and air and dust sampling.
Background: Childhood asthma morbidity and mortality in New Orleans, Louisiana, is among the highest in the nation. In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina created an environmental disaster that led to high levels of mold and other allergens and disrupted health care for children with asthma.
Objectives: We implemented a unique hybrid asthma counselor and environmental intervention based on successful National Institutes of Health asthma interventions from the National Cooperative Inner City Asthma (NCICAS) and Inner-City Asthma (ICAS) Studies with the goal of reducing asthma symptoms in New Orleans children after Hurricane Katrina.
What New Orleans' vulnerability taught us about public health preparedness: vulnerability has a face and a name.
Disaster Med Public Health Prep
September 2010
Excess mortality in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina: a preliminary report.
Disaster Med Public Health Prep
July 2007
Background: Reports that death notices in the Times-Picayune, the New Orleans daily newspaper, increased dramatically in 2006 prompted local health officials to determine whether death notice surveillance could serve as a valid alternative means to confirm suspicions of excess mortality requiring immediate preventive actions and intervention.
Methods: Monthly totals of death notices from the Times-Picayune were used to obtain frequency and proportion of deaths from January to June 2006. To validate this methodology the authors compared 2002 to 2003 monthly death frequency and proportions between death notices and top 10 causes of death from state vital statistics.
Staying financially afloat in the wake of a public health crisis.
J Public Health Manag Pract
May 2007
Searching for lessons from the New Orleans Health Department: implications for public health practice.
J Public Health Manag Pract
December 2007
The National Association footline of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) is the national organization representing local health departments. NACCHO supports efforts that protect and improve the health of all people and all communities by promoting national policy, developing resources and programs, seeking health equity, and supporting effective local public health practice and systems.
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