enHealth Council

Session Reports

Report of 8th Session of the enHealth Council
17 October 2001, Perth

Opening of Eighth Session of enHealth Council

Administration Matters

Policy Issues

Environmental Health Issues

Other Business

Opening of Eighth Session of enHealth Council

The eighth session of the enHealth Council was held in Perth on 17th October 2001. The following Members were in attendance:

Professor Christine Ewan	Chair
Ms Jan Bowman,	Department of Human Services, Victoria
Ms Sophie Dwyer	Queensland Health
Mr Owen Ashby	Australian Institute of Environmental Health
Mr Michael Jackson	Health Department of Western Australia
Ms Merle O’Donnell	National Indigenous Environmental Health Forum
Dr Mark Jacobs	Department of Health and Human Services, Tasmania
Professor Ian Lowe	Australian Consumers’ Association
Dr Kevin Buckett	Department of Human Services, South Australia
Mr Peter Taylor	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission
Dr Anne Neller	Public Health Association of Australia
Mr Paul Prendergast	Ministry of Health, New Zealand
Mr Xavier Schobben	Territory Health Services, Northern Territory
Mr John Woollard	Department of Health and Community Care, ACT
Dr Roscoe Taylor	NHMRC Health Advisory Committee
Ms Angela Gillman	Environment Australia
Mr Neil Shaw	NSW Health Department
Ms Claire Brady	Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing
Secretary - Ms Cathy Doherty	Commonwealth Australian Department of Health and Ageing

Others in attendance
Ms Delia Hendry	Presentation, Economic Assessment Ross River Virus in WA
Dr Peter DiMarco	WA Health
Mr Brian Wall	Presentation, Economic Evaluation Project

Apologies
Dr Peter Burnett	Environment Australia
Dr Stephen Corbett	NSW Health Department

Administration Matters

Minutes of the seventh session and Session Report, June 2001

Members noted and endorsed the Minutes and Session Report from the seventh session of Council.

Action arising

Members noted the status of action arising from the seventh session of Council.

Out-of-session items and decisions (June 2001-September 2001)

The four out-of-session items considered between June 2001 and September 2001 were noted:

The enHealth Council work priorities and budget was discussed at a teleconference. Members expressed the need to discuss this issue further at the October meeting.
The enHealth Council publication ‘Integrating Sustainable Development Principles and Environmental Health Practice’, was circulated to all members with responses to be forwarded to the Secretariat.
Members endorsed the Health Impact Assessment Guidelines. The Guidelines have gone to National Public Health Partnership (NPHP) out of session for endorsement and agreement to ‘joint badge’ the publication.
Members endorsed the Indigenous Environmental Health Report of the Third National Conference. It was agreed that the recommendations from this Conference be presented at the next meeting of NPHP with a view to being referred to AHMAC for consideration and support.

Members discussed the HIA Guidelines noting the considerable achievement in finalising the report. Members agreed to seek a formal recommendation from NPHP for the uptake of these guidelines by State and Territory jurisdictions.

Council budget and work program

Members discussed the enHealth budget and work program and potential funding options for planned activities currently unfunded. Members reconfirmed that the HIA series and the Indigenous Environmental Health Workers Projects were still the highest priorities given funding constraints.

Council proposed meeting dates for 2002

Members discussed dates and venues for enHealth Council meetings in 2002 and agreed that the next meeting would be held in Canberra on 13th and 14th February 2002.

Policy Issues

National Environmental Health Strategy

a) Non-auditory Health Effects of Noise

Members noted the current status of the review of the non-auditory health effects of noise.

b) Sustainable Development

The Integrating Sustainable Development Principles and Environment Health Practice publication was circulated to members out-of-session seeking member’s views on the agenda for action.

c) Workforce

Members noted the progress of workforce issues being managed by the AIEH. Action includes:

A letter sent to the Commonwealth Minister for Education requesting assistance in providing an articulation pathway for EHO’s Certificate Level to the Degree and consideration of the Competency Standards under the umbrella of the Health Services Industry Training Board; and
An Educator’s Forum has been established which will be considering the future direction of Environmental Health Officer training in Perth. It is proposed that this will set the framework for future course accreditation guidelines. Progress on this project will be reported in more detail at the next meeting.

d) Research

The Chair and the Secretariat met with Prof Tony McMichael, Director of the National Centre for Epidemiology and Population Health (NCEPH). The purpose of the meeting was to discuss options for the establishment of an Environmental Health Research Centre.

e) Mid-term Review of Implementation Plan

Members noted the status of current projects underway and/or completed according to the actions identified within the Implementation Plan.

Members noted that the ‘report card’ is the first stage of the review. The report card indicates the status of each activity noted in the Implementation Plan, and whether the projects are completed, ongoing, still relevant or have been replaced by a new project. Stage 2 of the Implementation Plan Review will identify milestones to measure the success of the implementation of the National Environmental Health Strategy.

f) Economic Evaluation

Members noted the current status of activities lead by Queensland Health towards the development of guidelines for economic evaluation of environmental health.

Mr Brian Wall, spokesman for Applied Economics (consultant), spoke to a paper that provided an update of the project and listed eight possible case studies to illustrate the principles of economic evaluation in the report.

Indigenous Environmental Health

a) National Indigenous Environmental Health Forum (NIEHF)

Members noted the outcomes of the Forum meeting. The Chair of the Forum reported on the main outcomes of the NIEHF, held on 5 September 2001. The outcomes included:

Mr Zane Hughes a new member of the Forum, Career Development Officer, Royal Darwin Hospital.
The necessity for Cross-Cultural Awareness Training for members who have not already undertaken it. The Council Secretariat will investigate what courses in cultural awareness are currently available and inform Council at its next meeting.

Members discussed the issue of salary conditions amongst EHWs and it was agreed that Mr Jackson, Mr Schobben and Ms O’Donnell will prepare a letter to ATSIC on this issue.

b) Indigenous Environmental Health Map of Agencies, Roles and Responsibilities Project (Mapping Project)

The status of the project to map the roles and responsibilities of agencies involved in Indigenous environmental health was noted.

c) NIEHF Representation in State Decision Making Processes

When this issue was raised at the 7th session, members agreed that involvement of members of the Forum in funding and decision making processes affecting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander environmental health was an issue to be considered within each jurisdiction.

State and Territory members undertook to raise the issue with their Aboriginal Health Units and NIEHF representative.

d) National Review of Indigenous Environmental Health Workers

Members noted the draft project brief. The enHealth Council agreed that the National Review of Indigenous Environmental Health Workers is a priority issue to commence in 2001-02.

The National Review will be undertaken by an appropriately qualified consultant or consortia with experience and a detailed understanding of Indigenous environmental health and IEHW issues. It is expected the Review will be undertaken over a 12 month period.

enHealth Council Task Groups

a) Information Task Group

Members were asked to note the process for the development of a conceptual framework for environmental health indicators, which will be circulated to members at a later date for comment.

Guidelines and Publications Development

a) Health Impact Assessment Series

Members noted the progression of the Health Impact Series - Intensive Animal Husbandry document. The steering group will hold a teleconference on the 6th November to progress the project.

The Management of Asbestos in the Non-Occupational Environment

At the 6th Session, Council supported a proposal prepared by the Department of Health Western Australia to develop national guidelines for the management of asbestos in the non-occupational environment. This proposal included:

Expanded scope of proposed guidelines.
Proposed contents of guidelines.
Business plan.
Extended tenure of steering group.

Members noted the progress of this project and that a workshop will be held in Adelaide in November 2001.

Indoor Air Quality in the Home

Members noted the status of the activities towards the finalisation of the ‘Healthy Homes’ booklet. The editorial committee is having a teleconference on 31st October 2001 to discuss the finalisation process and the membership of the broader reference group.

Ms Gillman noted a publication that Environment Australia had recently released on Air Toxics. It was reported that this document is a technical document on ambient air toxics and that the revision of the healthy homes document might include references to this document where appropriate. In turn; it was noted that a simplified version of the Air Toxics Report will be produced for the public and would aim to complement information on the Healthy Homes document.

Development of Air Quality Guidelines for WA

Members noted that there has been no further progress on the project.

Environmental Health Issues

Rural and Remote Potable Water Project

Members noted the status of the progress report on the development of the Rural and Remote Potable Water Project database that was released by the Bureau of Rural Sciences in September 2001.

Economic Evaluation of Ross River Virus in WA

Ms Delia Hendry gave a presentation on a proposed study on the Economic Impact of Ross River Virus in the Peel Region, WA.

Ms Hendry focused on a regional study that might be adapted to a national study. The proposal aimed to evaluate the economic impacts of Ross River Virus on:

the health system (health costs);
to individuals (health/loss of earnings);
loss of quality of life;
tourism in the region; and
property values in the region.

It was noted that this study would be valuable as an example of an economic evaluation of an environmental health issue.

NHMRC/enHealth Council joint project on Toxicity Assessment for Carcinogenic Soil Contaminants

At the last meeting of Council, it was noted that enHealth Council had agreed to NHMRC’s proposal for a joint committee of experts to be convened to assess the NHMRC’s Risk Assessment methodology on carcinogenic soil contaminants.

Dr Buckett noted that the expert committee might be run back-to-back to the NEPC workshop on contaminated sites to be held in May 2002.

Other Business

Presentation on Bougainville with the Australian Army

Mr Owen Ashby gave a presentation about his time in Bougainville.

Responsibility for Management of the Health Effects of Wood Smoke

A recommendation was made to members that each jurisdiction manage in collaboration with respective State and Territory environment agencies, the health effects of wood smoke.

Technical Solutions and Alternative Technology in Remote Aboriginal Communities

Mr Schobben and Mr Taylor provided a paper on the Technical Solution and Appropriate Technology in Remote Indigenous Communities. Council members noted this paper.

Consultation with Public Health Organisations

Members discussed the type of consultation which is appropriate for engaging with public health organisations.