Task 9 - Create Issue ProfilesIssue profiles are a tool that is used in the PACE-EH process to pull together the products from previous tasks, collect data if necessary, evaluate existing intervention programs, review the literature in terms of the specific environmental health risk and prepare for the development of an action plan to address the problem. The first task for assessment team members was to develop a standard structure and format for the issue profiles. The format included all of the work products from previous tasks and allowed for a common product that could be compared to the other issue profiles during the next task of rankiong and prioritizing issues. EHAT worked on the development of issue profiles in the previously established subcommittees for each of the four top priority issues. This exercise was stimulating for many members of the assessment team because the process of profile development required a comprehensive evaluation of an environmental issue and was their first opportunity to see the pieces of the assessment process come together into a cohesive report. EHAT members responded that this task was one of the first opportunities in the PACE-EH process to see their previous investment of time and resources appear as a tangible step towards responding to local environmental health threats. Following the development of the issues profiles each of the subcommittees prepared a comprehensive presentation to the remainder of the assessment team. The energy invested in both the production and presentation of the issue profiles resulted in subcommittee members competing with each other for supremacy. For health department staff this was a sign of complete engagement in the process.
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