Elizabeth J Friedman, MD, MPH

Medical Director, Environmental Health; Associate Professor of Pediatrics, University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine; Research Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, University of Kansas School of Medicine

Full Biography

Elizabeth Friedman, MD, MPH, Environmental Health Medical Director, General Academic Pediatrics, received a one-year, $40,000 cooperative agreement grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The funding is being used for the project, “Lead and Pesticide Safety Outreach to In-Home Early Childcare Centers.”

Dr. Friedman is the Region 7 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Units (PEHSU) Co-Director of  the Mid-America Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (MAPEHSU). Children's Mercy provides comprehensive pediatric environmental health services through MAPEHSU, which is one of 10 PEHSUs located in the continental U.S.

The project focuses on lead and pesticide outreach and education efforts for in-home daycare centers located within vulnerable communities identified by the EPA in St. Louis, MO.

“EPA Region 7 is committed to continuing its efforts to reduce children’s exposure from all sources of lead and pesticides,” said EPA Region 7 Administrator Meg McCollister. “This grant exemplifies our commitment to reducing sources of lead and pesticide exposure across the region and in historically underserved and overburdened communities.”

The long‐term goals are to:

• Deliver outreach and education on children’s lead and pesticide safety and exposure risks reduction to daycare providers
• Establish a series of digital pesticide safety messages (ie posters or flyers) to micro‐targeted groups and outlets within the community resulting in reduced use and/or better handling of pesticide products
• Decrease the exposure of children to lead as well as to pesticides at childcare centers
• Increase the awareness of the health impacts of elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs) in children and the availability of free testing through the St. Louis City Program, and in‐home lead assessments and water testing through the St. Louis County Program
• Encourage best practices including the use of lead renovation, repair, and painting (RRP) certified contractors for remediation.

The EPA funding will allow Dr. Friedman, the MAPEHSU team, and CM’s Healthy School Environments Program to conduct outreach that includes messaging about the health benefits of having children tested/treated for elevated blood lead levels (EBLLs) and improving environmental conditions promotes health for everyone. It will allow team members to perform walk through assessments and educate in-home day care providers and encourage the usage of lead-safe certified renovators when an in-home daycare remodels or paints. The MAPEHSU will also promote the use of a Healthy Home Childcare Kit that combines cleaning and integrated pest management supplies for Healthy Home Childcare Facilities.