Home IPM
Urban and structural pest management is the protection of property, food, and health from insect and rodent pests commonly found in homes, restaurants, and other businesses. Ultimately, pest management is about problem solving. It involves the collection of information, analysis of the data and development of a strategy to resolve (or prevent) a pest problem (R. D. Kramer, in Mallis Handbook). This simple definition captures the essence of Integrated Pest Management (IPM).
Decisions concerning the management and prevention of pest infestations should always be knowledge-based. IPM, then, is a decision-making process driven by information collected during an inspection. Because the quality, and thus effectiveness, of the decisions made in an IPM program are only as good as the information on which the decisions are made, inspections are the cornerstone of IPM programs.
The goal of Home IPM workshop is to teach participants how to generate and interpret the information meeded for effective IPM programs in the home environment. The workshop addresses the development of critical thinking skills required for pest management professionals to develop an IPM mind-set.
This workshop awards 5 hours HPC credit in Georgia. It also provides credit in Alabama, South Carolina, and Tennessee.