The Essentials for Healthy Homes Practitioners course brings together a diverse mix of housing and health professionals to promote practical and cost-effective methods for making homes healthier. A major strength of the course is the peer-to-peer learning that occurs between students. Through exercises, demonstrations and discussions, students better understand the roles, perceptions and challenges that their counterparts face. And they identify ways to coordinate their work to better protect residents from environmental and safety hazards in the home.
Home Inspectors play a critical role in healthy homes because they are working closely with the client at a time when the client may be more willing and able than ever to make informed decisions and address potential problems. They are also looking into the nooks and crannies of homes where they may identify problems not directly related to the home inspection.
Home inspectors will benefit from the course because it will help them:
- Identify connections between the structural problems they find and potential health impacts to better convince clients of the need to address shortcomings;
- Expand into new, potentially lucrative business opportunities helping clients resolve healthy homes problems;
- Develop networks among the public health and housing community to strengthen the quality of services; and
- Gain insight into the perspectives of nurses, code inspectors, environmental health specialists, and community-based organizations that help all be more effective.