Linda Capewell , V.M.D., M.P.H., was recently honored for her work on a projects to raise awareness and help reduce poisoning incidents in the home. Her one year fellowship is wrapping up this spring.

What's under your kitchen sink? Chances are it is potentially more harmful than you might think, especially to young children,  unless you've recently interacted with Linda Capewell, V.M.D., M.P.H., a Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Preventive Medicine Fellow assigned to the Georgia Department of Public Health in the Division of Health Protection.

"About 50 percent of poisonings in the home occur in children, so our target audience was children and their parents," says Capewell. "One of the main things we were doing was reaching out to the community, to show them ways to reduce hazardous chemicals in the home by showing them what toxic chemicals are dangerous to them."

In mid-May Jane Perry and the environmental health section presented Capewell with a Certificate of Meritorious Service for her work during the past year. The project involved a community advisory group in Coweta County. Those involved in the project used a number of methods to communicate with residents, including a visual display set up on Earth Day at Habitat for Humanity in Newnan. Capewell says involving schools, the library and other avenues also helped deliver the message.

It can be a challenge but one worth undertaking says Capewell, citing information obtained during the project that indicates more than 90 percent of poisonings occur at home, and three out of every four of those are caused by household chemicals.

There are ways to reduce those figures. Capewell says products such as baking soda or vinegar are often good replacements for more hazardous cleaning products. An added danger to the more toxic chemicals, she points out, is that children are often attracted to the bright colored containers.

Capewell says it was a nice surprise to have received recognition for her work. "This recognition has inspired me to keep the good work flowing," said Capewell. "Definitely continue to work with the chemical hazards program and implement similar projects in other counties in Georgia."   

-Story by Eric Jens, DPH Communications