What is the PACE-EH Guidebook?
The Protocol
ProtocolA series of formal steps for conducting a test. for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health (PACE-EH) Guidebook is designed to help communities systematically conduct and act on an assessment of environmental health status in their localities. The methodology takes the user through a community-based process for
Use C-FERST with the PACE-EH Guidebook
The EPA CARE Program was a key partner in developing C-FERST. Many CARE grantees have used the PACE-EH Guidebook, along with the CARE Roadmap and the CARE Resource Guide, to assist with community assessment. C-FERST has tools and information that can help you with tasks in the PACE-EH Guidebook:
13 Tasks of PACE-EH
Task 1: Determine Community Capacity
- Specify the resources, skills and capacities needed for the assessment
- Specify the available resources, skills and capacities
- Review possibilities for collaboration
- Determine ability to carry out the assessment
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Partners Table
Use the partners table in C-FERST to record information about your partnership’s available resources, skills and capacities.
Task 2: Define and Characterize the Community
- Define the community
- Describe the community’s characteristics, composition, organization and leadership
- Refine the definition of the community as needed
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Visualize data specific to your community.
- Community Data Table
Find information on community environmental and demographic characteristics in the Community Data Table.
Task 3: Assemble a Community-based Environmental Health Assessment Team
- Clarify expectations of team members
- Identify and invite individuals to help design and carry out the assessment
- Determine a governing structure, decision-making structure and ground rules
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Partners Table
As you assemble your team, you can use the Partners Table in C-FERST to record information about members, such as roles and responsibilities.
Task 4: Define the Goals, Objectives and Scope of the Assessment
- Establish goals and objectives for the assessment
- Describe the vision that will guide the process
- Describe the scope of issues to be addressed by the assessment
- Define key terms
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Visualize data specific to your community goals.
- Community Data Table
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns.
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns to guide the scope of issues to be addressed by the assessment.
Task 5: Generate a List of Environmental Health Issues
- Evaluate and select data-gathering method(s)
- Collect data on community concerns
- Collect data on community knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and perceptions
- Create a manageable list of issues
C-FERST Resources for this step:
Task 6: Analyze the Issues with a Systems Framework
- Understand the framework
- Identify the connections among health status, affected populations, exposure factors, environmental agents/conditions, contributing factors and behaviors and public health protection factors for selected environmental health issues
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Use Environmental Issue Profiles to gather information about sources, environmental conditions and other information for select environmental and health issues.
Task 7: Develop Locally Appropriate Indicators
- Develop list of potential indicators
- Identify key indicators based on selected criteria
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Find community environmental and demographic characteristics in the Maps that could be used as indicators.
- Community Data Table
Find community environmental and demographic characteristics in the Community Data Table that could be used as indicators.
- Environmental Measurement Methods
Explore methods for monitoring potential environmental indicators such as air quality and indoor air pollution.
Task 8: Select Standards Against Which Local Status Can be Compared
- Identify externally driven standards
- Agree upon locally appropriate standards
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Environmental Issue Profiles for some regulated environmental pollutants contain information about regulatory standards.
- Community Data Table
The Community Data Table allows you to compare certain environmental indicators to county, state and national estimates.
Task 9: Create Issue Profiles
- Adopt a standardized format for organizing information
- Gather information
- Collect data for locally developed indicators
- Develop a summary statement
Resources for this step:
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Environmental Issue Profiles are an example of a format for organizing information for a set of issues identified by other communities.
- Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns.
- Community Data Table
Use the Community Data Table to gather information about environmental sources and estimated concentrations, exposures and risks.
- Environmental Measurement Methods
Find a selection of methods for collecting local data.
Task 10: Rank Issues
- Determine the purpose of ranking
- Decide on ranking criteria
- Select a method for ranking
- Rank the issues
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns.
- Community Data Table
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns.
- Environmental Issue Profiles
Search through other resources regarding community environmental and health concerns.
Task 11: Set Priorities for Action
- Determine local priority-setting criteria
- Select a method for prioritizing
- Determine priorities
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Exposure and Risk Reduction Options and Community Projects
Links to information on exposure and risk reduction options, and strategies that other communities have used to address issues.
Task 12: Develop an Action Plan
- Develop goals and objectives
- Identify possible interventions and prevention activities
- Identify community assets
- Identify potential barriers
- Select an intervention(s)/activity(ies)
- Identify contributing factors
- Determine resource needs
- Identify potential partners
- Provide training
- Develop timeframe
- Determine measures of success
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Exposure and Risk Reduction Options and Community Projects
Links to information on exposure and risk reduction options and strategies that other communities have used to address issues.
Task 13: Evaluate Progress and Plan for the Future
- Agree on the questions to be answered by the evaluation
- Evaluate the success of the assessment process
- Begin preparations for ongoing community-based environmental health assessment activities
C-FERST Resources for this step:
- Maps
Collect data on community environmental and health concerns to add to the maps.
- Community Data Table
C-FERST data on community environmental and health concerns can be revisited over time to evaluate progress. Local data can also be entered in C-FERST to compare over time.