Introduction

Welcome to Toxic Thirdhand Smoke: An e-Learning Tool for PA Education

This learning activity will take you through the internet in search of information about the prevalence, toxicity, health implications, and mitigation of Thirdhand Smoke.

The Scenario: You are a health care provider. Your patient is a newborn baby boy (Adam) whose mother (Sarah) is concerned about her mother-in-law’s (Grandma) home, where the baby will be watched when the mother returns to work. The concern is that Grandma smokes cigarettes. Grandma says she has stopped smoking inside the home and will not smoke around Adam. Sarah is not relieved of her concerns as she has recently been told by a friend about thirdhand smoke. Sarah is asking you, her trusted source of health information, what are Adam’s risks of spending weekdays at grandma’s house?

The Plan: You tell Sarah that you are not sure what the actual risks are for Adam, but will do some research and relay your findings to her at Adam’s next visit, in two weeks. Sarah thanks you for looking into the data for her, and the two of you decide it best to keep Adam away from Grandma’s house in the meantime.