Public health leader proves residents and researchers can partner to catalyze policy change
On July 18, Dr. Doug Brugge, PhD, a professor of public health and community medicine, visited BU City Planning and Urban Affairs (BUCPUA) students in Felix Zemel’s UA 510 Course, Public Health and the Built Environment. As director of the Community Assessment of Freeway Exposure and Health (CAFEH), Brugge described the lasting impacts of ultrafine particle pollution and elaborated upon wide-ranging policy solutions.
“Yet, today, the most recent estimates still suggest that more than 100,000 Americans die each year, mostly from cardiovascular disease, from breathing in the (reduced) levels of PM2.5 that remain in our air. Indeed, PM2.5 appears to have health consequences similar to the effects of second hand smoke, an exposure that the public will no longer tolerate” (Brugge and Zamore, “Particulate Pollution: Regulated, but Still Killing”).
Because ultrafine particles are odorless and invisible to the unaided eye, people are often oblivious to their presence and potential harm; the EPA has yet to even regulate them. Starting in 2008, Brugge and his CAFEH research team commenced a cross-sectional study to monitor particle levels near highways in Chinatown, Somerville, Dorchester, and South Boston. A recreation vehicle (equipped with an air monitoring system) collected data on particulate concentrations, and the results were communicated to stakeholders through telling graphics.
Upon reviewing the particulate concentration results in Somerville, Chinatown, Dorchester and South Boston, the CAFEH team developed intervention strategies through the community-based participatory research (CBPR) framework. Zemel’s students recently studied CBPR, defined as “a collaborative approach to research that equitably involves all partners in the research process and recognizes the unique strengths that each brings. CBPR begins with a research topic of importance to the community and has the aim of combining knowledge with action and achieving social change…” (W.K. Kellogg Foundation’s Community Health Scholars Program, 2001).
Throughout the CBPR process, CAFEH partnered with residents in the targeted areas to collect feedback; a design charrette was even conducted for the case studies in Somerville and Chinatown. Solution examples included improved air filtration systems, placement of air intakes away from roads, soundproofing, land buffers, and vegetative barriers. These design and policy interventions may greatly improve the public health of those living near major highways, especially for low-income residents. Protection of children and elderly should be prioritized, especially while they attend public schools or civic centers near highways.
Brugge also directs the Tufts Community Research Center. Aside from instructing in the Department of Public Health and Community Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine, he also holds secondary appointments in Civil and Environmental Engineering, Biomedical Sciences and at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Active Citizenship and Public Service. Brugge has contributed to more than 130 publications and strives to see research translated into active policy practice.
– Courtney Thraen (MET’17)