Per- and Polyfluoroalkyl Substances (PFAS): Health Provider Series

chemical beakers

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are chemicals that are widely used in consumer goods and can be found in drinking water throughout the US. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) special committee recently examined the health outcomes associated with the most widely studied PFAS and made recommendations on who, when, how, and what to test, as well as the risks of testing. This series will provide information on the principles used for framing clinician decision making when there is uncertainty in outcomes in the scientific literature, what potential health effects may be associated with exposure, recommendations for testing and clinical follow-up, and special considerations when engaging environmental justice communities.

Participants will engage in the bi-directional virtual knowledge network by sharing clinical challenges and learning from experts and peers. 

Please register for each session individually within the dropdowns provided below.

 

SESSIONS

Overview

Dr. Anderko introduces the chemical family called perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including where they are found, potential health effects and why health providers should consider integrating this information into their clinical practice.

About the Speaker

Dr. Anderko is an environmental health nurse consultant and co-director of the Federal Region 3 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU) of Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment at the M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing, Villanova University. She has consulted with health providers and communities about potential health effects and risk reduction strategies for PFAS. She was a co-author for the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report, Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up (2022) https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidance-on-pfas-testing-and-health-outcomes.

12 - 1 pm ET

Overview

Discuss the principles developed for clinical evaluation or biological testing given substantial scientific uncertainty about health effects or the value of such measures in informing care and how these principles address the related social and ethical implications of testing.

About the Speaker

Kevin Elliot, PhD | Michigan State University

Dr. Kevin Elliott is a Professor at Michigan State University with joint appointments in Lyman Briggs College, the Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, and the Department of Philosophy. His research lies at the intersection of the philosophy of science, research ethics, and environmental ethics. Much of his scholarship has focused on the roles of ethical and social values in scientific research on environmental pollution. His work also addresses ethical issues related to science communication, science policy, and team science. He was a co-author for the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report, Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up (2022) https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidance-on-pfas-testing-and-health-outcomes.

12 - 1 pm ET

Overview

Learn how PFAS gets into our water, food, and consumer products, as well as findings from the NASEM report on potential health effects based on an extensive review of the literature.

About the Speaker

Erin Bell, PhD | University of Albany

Dr. Erin Bell is a Professor in the Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and the Department of Environmental Health in the School of Public Health of the University at Albany. Her research studies focus on environmental exposures as they relate to reproductive, immune, and cancer outcomes. Dr. Bell is currently the co-principal investigator of two cohort studies: the Upstate KIDS study, which follows over 6,000 children to identify potential risk factors for developmental health effects and the Health Study of New York State Communities Exposed to PFAS Contaminated Drinking Water, funded by ATSDR as one of seven sites participating in the Multi-Site PFAS Health Study. She has served on several National Academies committees, including the Committee to Review the Health Effects in Vietnam Veterans of Exposure to Herbicides: Seventh, Eighth, and Tenth Biennial Updates. She was a co-author for the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report, Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up (2022) https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidance-on-pfas-testing-and-health-outcomes

 

12 - 1 pm ET

Overview

This presentation will focus on clinical guidance/recommendations on PFAS blood or urine testing, recommended guidance on how clinicians can advise patients on PFAS testing and health outcomes that may be associated with PFAS, as well as what to advise patients regarding standard medical or preventive care and exposure reduction.

About the Speaker

Alex Kemper, MD | The Ohio State University

Dr. Kemper is the Division Chief of Primary Care Pediatrics at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and Professor of Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. The focus of his research is the evaluation of preventive services delivered in the primary care setting. He currently serves as the Chair of the Evidence Review Workgroup for the U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Advisory Committee on Heritable Disorders in Newborns and Children and is the Deputy Editor of PEDIATRICS. He is a former member of the US Preventive Services Task Force and has served on the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine planning committee on special nutritional requirements for disease states. He was a co-author for the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report, Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up (2022)

https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidance-on-pfas-testing-and-health-outcomes.

 

12 - 1 pm ET

Overview

Discuss the challenges of and solutions for reducing PFAS contamination in environmental justice communities.

About the Speaker

Pam Miller | Founder and Executive Director, Alaska Community Action on Toxics (ACAT)

Pamela K. Miller is founder and Executive Director of Alaska Community Action on Toxics (ACAT). ACAT is an environmental health and justice research, policy, and advocacy organization. She brings more than 30 years of research, education, and advocacy experience to her present work. She serves as Principal Investigator for community-based participatory research projects funded by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Pamela received a Meritorious Service Award from the University of Alaska and Alaska Conservation Foundation’s Olaus Murie Award in recognition of her “long-term outstanding professional contributions to the conservation movement in Alaska.” Prior to coming to Alaska, she served as Ocean Issues Technical Coordinator for the Washington Department of Ecology and Director of a marine science education center at Nisqually Reach in southern Puget Sound. She received the Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence in Washington State. She served as a community liaison for the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report, Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up (2022)  https://www.nationalacademies.org/our-work/guidance-on-pfas-testing-and-health-outcomes.

 

12 - 1 pm ET

Overview

Review the NASEM report’s recommendations that include public health surveillance, as well as the critical need to educate health providers on environmental exposures and associated health effects.

About the Speaker

Laura Anderko, RN, PhD

Dr. Anderko is an environmental health nurse consultant and co-director of the Federal Region 3 Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU) of Mid-Atlantic Center for Children’s Health and the Environment at the M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing, Villanova University. She has consulted with health providers and communities about potential health effects and risk reduction strategies for PFAS. She was a co-author for the recent National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine (NASEM) report, Guidance on PFAS Exposure, Testing, and Clinical Follow-up (2022) https://nap.nationalacademies.org/catalog/26156/guidance-on-pfas-exposure-testing-and-clinical-follow-up .

 

ACCREDITATION AND CONTACT HOURS

Each participant will earn one contact hour for attending each session. There is no cost for participating in any of the sessions.

Villanova University M. Louise Fitzpatrick College of Nursing is accredited as a provider of nursing continuing professional development by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

The nurse planners, content experts’, faculty, and others in control of content (either individually or as a group) have no relevant  financial relationships with ineligible companies



ECHO

Mid-Atlantic Center for Children's Health and the Environment

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This website was supported by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and funded (in part) by a cooperative agreement with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention/Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (CDC/ATSDR). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) supports the PEHSUs by providing partial funding to CDC/ATSDR through an Inter-Agency Agreement. The findings and conclusions presented have not been formally disseminated by CDC/ATSDR or EPA and should not be construed to represent any agency determination or policy. Use of trade names that may be mentioned is for identification only and does not imply endorsement by the CDC/ATSDR or EPA.