Step 3. Public Health Action Plans

Ways to Carry Out Recommendations

In addition to stating recommendations, a public health action plan should be included in all PHAs except when a site that poses no public health hazard and when no recommendations are proposed. Whenever conclusions about a site result in recommendations to protect public health, an action plan needs to be put into place so that everyone interested in the site knows who has agreed to carry out the recommendations.

Sometimes, recommendations are carried out before completion of the public health assessment. Information on actions that have been completed, including who did the work and when, should be reported in the document. All plans need to be coordinated with community members and with the agency responsible for the action.

  • Biologic monitoring because of short-term exposures that could result in adverse health effects requiring rapid intervention.
  • Epidemiology study because of long-term exposures that could result in adverse health effects.
  • Environmental sampling to assess the unknown public health risks posed by the site.
  • Community health investigation because of past exposure that is not expected to cause adverse health effects.
  • Community health education even though exposure is absent and is not likely to occur.
Page last reviewed: February 20, 2008