Geospatial mapping and resource utilization tool in support of a national smoke-free public housing rule

Sonia Tetlow,Brian Gurbaxani,Julie Swann,Simon Mcnabb,Kristie Choe,Corinne Graffunder,Kathleen Hayes,Jiali Zhao,Vishal Mummigatti,Connor Owen,Divya Vedula,Aaron Ahn,Diem Tran,Miriam Kelly,Jose A Rodriguez

doi:10.1186/s13104-019-4815-x

Abstract

ObjectiveTo advance public health support for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s smoke-free rule, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention collaborated with the Georgia Institute of Technology to develop a geospatial mapping tool. The objective was to create a tool state and local public health agencies could use to tailor smoke-free educational materials and cessation interventions for specific public housing development resident populations.ResultsThe resulting “Extinguish Tool” includes an interactive map of U.S. public housing developments (PHDs) and healthcare facilities that provides detailed information on individual PHDs, their proximity to existing healthcare facilities, and the demographic characteristics of residents. The tool also estimates the number of PHD residents who smoke cigarettes and calculates crude estimates of the potential economic benefits of providing cessation interventions to these residents. The geospatial mapping tool project serves as an example of a collaborative and innovative public health approach to protecting the health and well-being of the nation’s two million public housing residents, including 760,000 children, from the harms of tobacco smoking and secondhand smoke exposure in the places where they live, play, and gather.

Highlights

480,000 Americans die from cigarette smoking each year, including 41,000 from secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure [1]
Variables from the 2015 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), a national dataset of state-level survey data collected by all 50 U.S states and participating territories, that aligned with resident characteristics variables in the Housing and Urban Development (HUD) public housing development (PHD) dataset were used in the regression model [15, 16]
The results provide crude estimates of the potential cost savings to the public housing sector that could be realized in addition to the positive return on investment (ROI) estimates from averted medical costs

Summary

Introduction

480,000 Americans die from cigarette smoking each year, including 41,000 from secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure [1]. One-third of adults living in public housing currently smoke cigarettes [5]. The estimated 2 million individuals who live in U.S public housing, including 760,000 children, are at risk of adverse health outcomes associated with smoking and exposure to SHS [5]. On February 3, 2017, the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), which oversees public housing, enacted a rule requiring agencies that administer public housing to implement a smoke-free policy within 18 months [6]. As part of its multifaceted efforts to support implementation of HUD’s rule, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Office on Smoking and Health collaborated with CDC’s Office of Science and a team of senior design students from the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) to develop an interactive

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Conclusion