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Funded Project

Funding Program: IPM Partnership Grants

Project Title: Developing Bed Bug Educational Videos for Hispanic/Latino Communities

Project Directors (PDs):

Changlu Wang [1]

Richard Cooper [1]

Lead State: NJ

Lead Organization: Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey

Undesignated Funding: $13,222

Start Date: Apr-01-2012

End Date: Feb-28-2013

No-Cost Extension Date: Apr-30-2013

Pests Involved: Bed Bug

Site/Commodity: urban community

Area of Emphasis: education, control

Summary: In recent years, bed bug infestations have become a major concern throughout the U.S. The resurgence of bed bugs has caused significant economic burden and health impact among the urban communities. More alarmingly, bed bugs began to appear in work places, hospitals, schools, and other public places. Because bed bugs are a relatively new pest, most people are unprepared for dealing with them. Many educational materials have been developed. But most of them are in English. There is a shortage of user-friendly bed bug educational materials in other languages. Spanish is the second most widely used/spoken language in the U.S. Hispanic/Latino communities are subject to higher rates of bed bug infestations and misuse of pesticides due to their lower socioeconomic status. We propose to develop two Spanish bed bug educational videos that target Hispanic/Latino people. Such materials are in urgent need for conducting outreach work in these under-served communities. The objectives of this project are to: 1) develop a Spanish video introducing the bed bug biology and IPM; and 2) develop a Spanish video demonstrating the details of individual bed bug control techniques. This project fills an important gap in bed bug educational resources. It will increase the awareness about bed bugs, reduce bed bug spread, pesticide use, and human health risks associated with improper bed bug control practices. This project addresses the priority proposed by U.S. Environmental Protection Agency in 2009.

Objectives:

Our objectives are to: 1) develop an introductory Spanish video about bed bug biology and IPM; and 2) develop a Spanish video demonstrating the details of various non-chemical and chemical control techniques.

This project will further augment the mission of the Northeastern IPM Center by providing easy-to-learn bed bug IPM education materials. Use of educational video materials is expected to have the following impacts:

Safeguarding human health and the environment. The public will be more aware of bed bug biology, prevention methods, control options, and IPM. They will be less likely to bring in new infestations or spread existing infestations unintentionally. Use of off-label products or non-effective pesticides is expected to be reduced.

Economic benefits. Effective learning of IPM principles and proven effective technologies will lead to more effective bed bug control, reduced bed bug infestations, and lowered pest control cost and economic loss.

Implementation of IPM. We anticipate the video materials will stimulate the audience in adopting safer and more effective bed bug IPM programs in their daily practices. The bed bug videos will also become available nationwide through youtube.com web account registered by New Jersey Agricultural Experiment Station.

Proposal

Final Report:

Outcomes
Two videos were developed from this project. The first video titled "Las Chinches de Cama y el Manejo Integrado de Plagas" (7:51 minutes long) was designed for the general public. This video describes the biology of bed bugs, how to prevent, inspect, and control bed bug infestations. The second video titled "Manejo de Chinches de Cama para Profesionales" (42 minutes long) was developed for pest management professionals. It provides much more detailed information on bed bug history, biology, medical importance, prevention, and control. The two videos were posted at: http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLC58665B210F381CE.

The 1st video was shown to two low-income communities located at Hackensack, New Jersey in March 2013. Spanish-speaking residents from two communities attended the training. Residents first watched the video, then a question and answer session was followed. The attendees were asked to fill out a survey at the end. A total of 36 residents attended. Not all of them filled out the survey. Some of them filled out the survey partially. The following findings were obtained:

1. 19% (n = 26) of the residents experienced bed bugs within last 12 months

2. 80% of the surveyed residents said the video is very useful and 20% of the residents said the video is useful (n = 20).

3. Residents used the following methods (from most frequent to least frequent) for bed bug control: a) disinfectants (61%), b) laundering (57%), c)insecticide sprays (30%), d)insecticide foggers (26%), e) de-cluttering (26%), f)discarding furniture (13%), and g)others (13%).

Impacts
Based on resident surveys, they are more likely to use bed bug monitors to detect bed bugs, use less chemicals (sprays or foggers).

All surveyed residents commented the video is useful or very useful.

After posting on the web, the 1st video received 3,060 views from 1/25/2013 to 4/30/2013. The 2nd video received 180 views from 3/20/2013 to 4/30/2013.

We plan to distribute a USB drive containing the 1st video to public housing authorities in future bed bug trainings. We asked New Jersey Pest Management Association and National Pest Management Association to spread the news about the professional video as well as the consumer video as a resource for clients of their membership.

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