SAYRE, Pa. — Asthma, cancer, cardiac disease, and more will be researched as part of a study of the health impacts of gas drilling in the Marcellus Shale formation.
Guthrie Health, which serves northern Pennsylvania and the Southern Tier of New York, has partnered with Geisinger Health System, of Central and Northeastern Pennsylvania, to conduct the study. It will be the first large-scale, scientifically rigorous assessment of the health effects of natural-gas production, according to Guthrie.
“We do not have any sort of definitive cause and effect,” that links health issues to the natural-gas industry, says Laura Fitzgerald, director of the Guthrie Foundation for Research and Education. “There is a lot of speculation. A lot of people have opinions. There has never been any systematic clinical trial.”
That’s why this study is so important, she says. As a health-care provider, Guthrie needs to know what it may potentially encounter when treating patients.
Along with preparing Guthrie, the findings of the study could also influence policymakers, communities, and the natural-gas industry itself, she adds.
Guthrie Health and Geisinger Health System will collaborate in the planning and execution of the study, which includes the development of a health-surveillance network to capture, assess, and report on patient-level data secured by the two organizations through electronic health records.
The study will look at detailed health histories of thousands of patients from the two organizations that live near the Marcellus Shale formation, which currently contains about 5,000 natural-gas wells.
“This health surveillance network will be the first systematic longitudinal study to evaluate the effects of Marcellus Shale drilling within the community,” Guthrie President and CEO Dr. Joseph Scopelliti said in a news release. “We anticipate additional institutional partners. Our aim is to create a cross-disciplinary and sharable repository of data on environmental exposures, health outcomes, and community impacts. The analysis of this data will further allow for the development of appropriate interventions.”
The study will look at direct health issues, such as asthma, but will also review more indirect concerns, Fitzgerald says. That includes crime and even the effect gas drilling has on the housing market because all of those issues can eventually impact health and wellness.
Guthrie hopes to have preliminary data for release within the next year, but some aspects of the study will unfold over a period as long as 15 years.
As data is gathered and analyzed, Guthrie will have findings to release. Those findings will be shared with communities, policymakers, and the industry, Fitzgerald says, with the goal of allowing those groups to make informed decisions concerning natural-gas drilling.
Such findings could eventually impact hydrofracturing, a process where drilling companies inject a high-velocity stream of water, sand, and chemicals into the earth to break up and release pockets of gas. There has been much public speculation that the practice poses risks of contaminating water supplies. New York currently does not allow hydrofracturing and has been studying the issue for several years. The state is reportedly close to approving hydrofracking in the Southern Tier region, according to an Aug. 21 article in the New York Times. Billboards regarding the issue have been popping up around the region.
Based in Sayre, Pa., Guthrie Health (www.guthrie.org) is a community-based health-care system jointly formed by Guthrie Healthcare System (GHS) and Guthrie Clinic. GHS provides inpatient, outpatient, and home-based services through Corning Hospital, Troy Community Hospital, Robert Packer Hospital, and Guthrie Home Care and Guthrie Hospice. Guthrie Clinic provides primary and specialty care at 25 regional clinics. About 60 percent of Guthrie’s patients are from New York, where Guthrie has locations in Apalachin, Big Flats, Bath, Corning, Ithaca, Owego, Pine City, Vestal, Watkins Glen, Waverly, Erwin, and Elmira. Guthrie Health provides care for approximately 200,000 patients annually in its 11-county service area.
According to the 2011 Form 990s on file at www.guidestar.org, GHS, which employs 323 people, reported revenue of $50.7 million and expenses of $36.1 million. Guthrie Clinic, with 1,773 employees, reported revenue of $223 million and expenses of
$247.6 million.
Geisinger Health System (www.geisinger.org), based in Danville, Pa., serves more than 2.6 million residents throughout 44 counties in Central and Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Contact DeLore at tdelore@tgbbj.com