How do we communicate information about lead poisoning to recent immigrants and refugees?

In the United States, refugee children are twice as likely as non-refugee children to have high blood lead levels. Anemia, malnourishment, non lead-safe housing, and some cultural practices (such as eating on the floor) increase the risk of lead poisoning.

The CommunicateHealth team used an iterative design process to create picture-based fact sheets that can be used during home visits with refugee families. We:

• Conducted in-depth interviews with local refugee service providers, environmental health educators, and refugee and adult educators
• Incorporated international symbols commonly used in refugee camps
• Created early prototypes and tested them with refugees from Burma, Somalia, the former Soviet Union, Mongolia, Iraq, and Bhutan

Client: U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Environmental Health