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Ongoing NIEHS Center supported Outreach programs within the city of New York include those conducted by the New York University/Bellevue Occupational and Environmental Medicine Clinic (NBOEMC), which is directed by NYU-NIEHS Center member Dr. George Friedman-Jiminez. The NBOEMC, established in 1991, provides clinical diagnostic, treatment, and prevention services. Clinic outreach efforts have included:
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Participation in Health Fairs in local Chinese and Latino communities.
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Screening Chinese garment workers in a community-based organization in Brooklyn for work-related musculoskeletal complaints and respiratory complaints.
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Participation in the North Brooklyn Asthma and Environment Consortium to develop interventions to reduce the impact of environmental factors in asthma.
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Occupational health issues presentations at union Health and Safety meetings.
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Student mentoring, including a medical student intern who developed a screening for occupational diseases with the El Puente community group, and an undergraduate student intern (spring 2000 semester) who did interviewing for a pilot study of work-related asthma among Bellevue Hospital asthma patients.
In addition, the Clinic conducts community outreach in conjunction with its research projects. The Latino America Workers Project, a community organization based in Brooklyn and Queens that organizes Latino workers in NYC, is collaborating with the NBOEMC on a community outreach project. The project, funded by the 9/11 fund and the Robin Hood Foundation, aims to identify Latino day laborers who participated in cleanup efforts after the World Trade Center disaster. The PI of the project is Denise Harrison, MD, who secured the grants and directs the screening. Many of these workers were hired per diem for weeks or months to clean offices, residences, stores, and other areas that had large amounts of dust and debris from the WTC collapse. Few were given any training or protective equipment, and many report heavy exposures to dusts, odors, fumes, and other environmental exposures related to the WTC collapse. It was very difficult to get the day laborers to come in to Bellevue Hospital for evaluations, so the grants are supporting a mobile medical van that provides medical evaluations at more convenient locations in the community. The evaluations consist of an intake questionnaire, a medical history and targeted physical examination, pulmonary function testing, blood tests including routine medical tests and blood lead level if appropriate based on history. Patients with findings suggesting potential medical problems (WTC related or not) are then referred to Bellevue for further evaluation.
This program has also conducted an outreach grant from the Public Welfare Foundation for occupational health outreach to under served minority communities in New York City. Dr. Friedman-Jiminez was an advisor for this effort. The objectives of the project were: 1) to provide education and training in general occupational health issues of workers, with an emphasis on low socioeconomic, new immigrants, uninsured, and non-unionized workers in New York City; and 2) to provide accessible services in industrial hygiene to evaluate and suggest remediation for occupational hazards, with the collaboration of workers and employers. In this work, the NBOEMC is collaborating with two organizations: El Puente (a community group), and the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health (NYCOSH, a non-profit educational organization). Such education and training of workers on occupational safety and health is an important and effective means to prevent occupational diseases, injuries, and disabilities. This is an excellent example of a case in which the NYU-NIEHS Center core support outreach resources are being "leveraged" by obtaining outside financial support to allow us to conduct outreach to under served minorities as a part of this Center's activities.
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