Weatherization

Here is the abstract from the article describing the benefits of adding a weatherization program to an in-home CHW programs:

Objectives. We assessed the benefits of adding weatherization-plus-health interventions
to an in-home, community health worker (CHW) education program
on asthma control.
Methods. Weused a quasi-experimental design to compare study group homes
(n = 34) receiving CHW education and weatherization-plus-health structural interventions
with historical comparison group homes (n = 68) receiving only education.
Data were collected in King County, Washington, from October 2009 to
September 2010.
Results. Over the 1-year study period, the percentage of study group children
with not-well-controlled or very poorly controlled asthma decreased more than
the comparison group percentage (100% to 28.8% vs 100% to 51.6%; P = .04).
Study group caregiver quality-of-life improvements exceeded comparison group
improvements (P = .002) by 0.7 units, a clinically important difference. The decrease
in study home asthma triggers (evidence of mold, water damage, pests,
smoking) was marginally greater than the comparison group decrease (P = .089).
Except for mouse allergen, the percentage of study group allergen floor dust
samples at or above the detection limit decreased, although most reductions
were not statistically significant.
Conclusions. Combining weatherization and healthy home interventions (e.g.,
improved ventilation, moisture and mold reduction, carpet replacement, and
plumbing repairs) with CHW asthma education significantly improves childhood
asthma control. (Am J Public Health. 2013;104:e57–e64. doi:10.2105/AJPH.2013.
301402)