Health and environment analysis for decision making.

This article gives a overview of the HEADLAMP project and its background. The project aims at bringing valid and useful information on the local and national health impacts of environmental hazards to those responsible for environmental health protection. Its main tools are health and environment data linkage methods, environmental health indicators used to quantify and monitor the local situation, and the interpretation and decision-making process. The project has 3 main characteristics which differentiate it from ad hoc epidemiological studies: (i) it is based on scientifically established relationships between environmental exposures and health effects; (ii) it uses routinely-collected data, or where necessary, new data collected using low-cost techniques; and (iii) it aims at providing information on which to base preventive action against environmental health problems. Based on these characteristics, a framework is proposed for the application of HEADLAMP for managing specific environmental health problems.