Principles and Scope of Environmental Medicine

Environment, Health, & Nursing Practice

“…Based on an Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, Pope, Snyder and Mood (1995) recommended that nurses should develop basic competencies that include: basic understanding of the relationship between the environment and health; the ability to assess for environmental hazards; advocate for the reduction of environmental risks; and awareness of EH laws and regulations. With increased awareness of EH hazards among healthcare professionals, current EH challenges may be reduced in the future (Koplan & Fleming, 2000;Tarcher, 1992).…”

“…Recent studies have suggested that environmental factors may be the single most important predictor of health outcomes in the near future. They further suggest that the degradation of our natural resources and other environmental issues may represent the "ultimate threat" to our health (Tarcher, 1992;Van Dongen, 2002;CDC, 2005). In a 2002 survey of nurses in Wisconsin, Van Dongen noted that nurses see a clear connection between the environment and health concerns of their patients.…”

“…Environmental health (EH) hazards present formidable challenges to human health (Hunter & McCurry, 2010;Koplan & Fleming, 2000;Meadows, 2009;Polk & Green, 2007;Salazar, 2000;Tarcher, 1992; US Department of Health & Human Services, 2000). Recent studies have suggested that environmental factors may be the single most important predictor of health outcomes in the near future.…”