Abstract
A safe and healthy natural and built environment is fundamental to children's health and represents a significant determinant of community well-being. We aimed to identify and prioritize environmental health concerns within resource-poor neighborhoods in the Dominican Republic using free-listing and semi-structured focus groups composed of parents and caregivers in the perirural community of Consuelo, Dominican Republic. Transcripts were coded and relevant themes identified using qualitative content analysis. Demographic data and information regarding trash disposal practices were also collected. Participants described common health concerns, including respiratory infections, asthma, vector-borne illnesses, and diarrheal diseases and linked them to environmental hazards in their communities, such as air quality and sanitation. Interventional priorities that emerged included reduction of trash accumulation and trash burning as well as improvement of sanitation facilities.
Publication types
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Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
MeSH terms
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Adult
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Dominican Republic
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Environmental Health*
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Female
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Garbage*
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Humans
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Male
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Public Health
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Recycling
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Refuse Disposal
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Residence Characteristics*
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Young Adult
Grants and funding
This work was supported by the Pincus Family Foundation through the David N. Pincus Global Health Fellowship Program. Dr. Chloe Turner's time was supported through this program. Dr. Rodney R Finalle is currently employed by Merck Vaccines, but at the time when this study was conducted, he was employed by the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and not by Merck Vaccines. The funders and the commercial employer had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The funder provided support in the form of salaries for authors [CT], but did not have any additional role in the study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript. The specific roles of these authors are articulated in the ‘author contributions’ section. The funders and the commercial employer had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.