Healthy Homes is a multi-dimensional concept that spans the historically separate domains of housing, public health and environmental health.
Introduction
What is the Healthy Homes program about?
Healthy Homes highlights the connection between health and housing, and how to take a holistic approach to identifying and resolving problems that threaten the health and well-being of residents. Healthy Homes is a multi-dimensional concept that spans the historically separate domains of housing, public health and environmental health. The seven principles of Healthy Homes are:
- Keep it dry
- Keep it clean
- Keep it ventilated
- Keep it pest-free
- Keep it safe
- Keep it contaminate-free
- Keep it maintained
Healthy Homes has been adopted by several federal agencies, and is supported by the CDC, EPA and HUD. Many lead poisoning prevention programs include Healthy Homes programs, expanding on their success in controlling lead poisoning in homes. Healthy Homes usually brings together multiple agencies - public health departments, housing inspectors, visiting nurses, weatherization agencies, health care providers, non-profit and community organizations, etc. - to address housing conditions. HUD has been active in promoting Integrated Pest Management (IPM), a key component of Healthy Homes, in public housing.
The primary sponsor of Healthy Homes has been the National Center for Healthy Housing (NCHH); for more information, visit the NCHH website, which has many resources, including policy documents and training materials.
The PA IPM program is a training partner of the national Healthy Homes movement, and conducts training regularly. We conduct trainings in:
Essentials of Healthy Homes for Practitioners - two-day flagship workshop
Healthy Homes for Community Health Workers - one day workshop for staff who conduct home visits
IPM for Multi-family Housing - IPM for apartments and row homes; for residents, property managers, facilities staff, and pest control operators.
You may download our training brochure
We also conduct other workshops for specific situations - child care centers, schools, foster families, immigrant populations, and many others. Please inquire: pscip@psu.edu
Other sites for Healthy Homes info include the US agencies mentioned above. Stop Pests in Housing provides IPM training to public housing authorities nationwide, through funding by HUD. Extension resources for Healthy Homes are available online.