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If a child in Caroline County under the age of 6 years old is found to have an elevated blood lead level and is started under the Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Case Management program with the Health Department, they are eligible to have an Environmental Investigation completed. What is an Environmental Investigation?
At a blood lead level of 3.5 a child is entered into case management. This is when assessment and education by the nurse case manager is completed with the family. If a child’s blood lead level is found to be 5 or greater than an Environmental Investigation is recommended. This will be completed by a lead inspector from MDE or Maryland Department of the Environment. This inspector is certified by the State of Maryland. The EI can be completed for those who are renting their home and currently on a case by case basis for those who own their home. It is also free of any charge to the family.
After an assessment is completed with the nurse case manager and the family requests the Environmental Investigation, a notification is sent to the inspector. The inspector will contact the family to determine a day and time that works best for them. If language interpretation services are needed, these are provided. The child is not required to be present for this, however the parent(s) or adults in the home that will be responsible for the information obtained should be present.
The inspector will arrive at the home and the investigation will begin. The investigator will discuss with you any concerns you have and answer any questions. The investigator is trained to look for suspicious items and areas that may be contaminated with lead. This includes paint, furniture, surfaces, toys, spices, dust, and dirt. The inspector will take samples of areas that they believe may be contaminated and from areas that the child is frequently in such as bedroom, play areas inside and outside, and items the child plays with often that may be contaminated.
Samples can be taken various ways. The inspector is able to take samples of dust from inside and dirt outside, as well as frequently used spices and have them sent to a lab for testing. The inspector also has tools available to check surfaces that can provide an immediate result. Once all sample results are obtained a few weeks later, a report is put together and shared with the family and the nurse case manager. At that point the inspector will make suggestions about what can be done to remediate the problem areas. Further discussion can also be had with the nurse case manager to help make a plan to ensure a healthy environment for the child.
The family always has options. Families with children in lead case management can also have an environmental investigation done by a private agency of their choosing. There are also home testing kits available on the market, but their reliability is not guaranteed. It is highly recommended that any testing be completed by a trained and licensed/certified professional to ensure the most accurate results.
