Early Education and Care - Green Cleaning and Asthma Home Visiting

Project Details

Year: 2017
Location: Springfield
Project Manager: Dawn DiStefano, Chief Finance and Grants Officer
Partners: Partners for a Healthier Community/Pioneer Valley Asthma Coalition, Informed Green Solutions, Inc.

Overview

The Springfield Childcare and Healthy Homes Pilot Project and Square One trained staff and parents on how to decrease use of toxic cleaning and pest control materials in homes and at Square One facilities. The project also visited homes in Springfield where there is incidence of asthma to provide education on asthma triggers and referrals to community resources.

Results 

Springfield Partners for a Healthier Community provided the training and certification for Square One Home Visitors to appropriately assess and engage with families affected by asthma.  Staff were trained to identify and understand environmental issues as well as provide access and information of community resources to remedy the home environment.  Carol Westinghouse of Informed Green Solutions provided training to Square One Executive Team members and Early Education and Care management staff to understand the need for green cleaning and implementation methods (cleaning practice and policy change). Carol provided materials for the project including a Model Policy and training materials that Square One can use for future workshops. She has recommended safer substitutions for the cleaning products previously used, and is collecting information for the assessment reports and checklist.

During March and April, Square One Early Education and Care staff (20 total) were trained on use of green cleaning materials in center based classrooms.  In addition, Square One home visitors (5 total) received training to complete asthma assessments and home remedies utilizing green cleaning for families experiencing severe asthma. Two (2) family education groups were offered to train families on the use of green cleaning materials. 12 families in total participated in the education series.