Programs & Services - Lead Safe Babies

Lead Safe Babies is a health prevention program, with the goal of ensuring that children never become lead poisoned. The Lead Safe Babies program provides new mothers with the necessary education and materials needed to keep their children free from lead poisoning.

A child who becomes lead poisoned can have medical and behavior problems, or problems developing and learning, and may be less prepared when they start school than non-poisoned children. The child may not look or act sick, however they still may be lead-poisoned. Blood tests are the only way to be sure a child is to know for sure if a child is lead poisoned.

Houses and/or apartment buildings built before 1978, or painted with paint made before 1978, may contain lead. When this paint starts cracking, peeling or is worn, from constantly opening and closing windows or doors, this creates lead dust. As babies start to crawl they may start putting hands or toys with lead dust on them in their mouths, ingesting it into their bodies.

Outreach workers from the NNCC and NNCC-member nurse-managed health centers visit mothers in their homes, and educate them about how they can prevent their children from becoming lead poisoned (by things such as washing children’s toys, cleaning surfaces weekly, and staying away from peeling paint, etc.). Additionally, mothers are given a “lead bucket” filled with cleaning supplies to help remind them of the importance of wiping surfaces and eliminating dust to prevent their children from ingesting lead. Lead buckets also contain crayons, educational coloring books for the children, and other educational materials. Outreach workers then follow up with the caregivers just before the baby reaches nine months of age to encourage the caregivers to get their children screened for lead poisoning.

The Lead Safe Babies Program of the National Nursing Centers Consortium (NNCC) was kicked off in December 2000 with a generous grant from the City of Philadelphia Department of Public Health, Childhood Lead Poisoning Prevention Program (CLPPP). The NNCC received additional funding in 2001 and 2002 from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Region III, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to expand the program to additional member nurse-managed health centers.

Results of previous Lead Safe Babies programs have shown a statistically significant increase in knowledge about lead poisoning prevention among participants. Positive results allowed the NNCC to expand 2002 this best practice program to rural communities that have not previously had access to lead poisoning prevention education and techniques. Primary prevention was geared toward 100 pregnant women and new mothers living in the following counties: Allegheny, Greene, Huntingdon, Montgomery, and Northumberland. The four NNCC-member nurse-managed health centers that participated in the “Lead Safe Babies Rural Expansion” program were the Rural Nursing Connection of Pennsylvania State, the Primary Care Center of Mt. Morris, the Children’s Health Center of Visiting Nurses Association, and the Nursing Center of Bloomsburg University and Shamokin Area Community Hospital Nursing Center. 

The NNCC is currently administering a program, funded by the CDC in Philadelphia with participating centers: Abbottsford Family Health Services, Falls Family Health Services, The Health Annex of Myers Recreation Center, and Temple Health Connection of Temple University College of Nursing.