I shared last week how the end of the state’s COVID-19 Declaration of Emergency changes what our COVID-19 Data Dashboard carries for hospital-reported data. A surveillance order through which some of this information was reported to ADHS is no longer in effect. As a result, the dashboard entries for Hospital COVID-19 Specific Metrics, and Ventilator [...]
In a public health emergency, as with any other battle, it’s critical to have the best, most accurate information. That’s why ADHS has invested considerable staff time and resources during the pandemic to gathering, synthesizing, and presenting data critical to understanding what COVID-19 is up to. Having this data allows public health professionals, healthcare providers, [...]
This week, hospital medical leaders and I joined Dr. Richard Carmona, the 17th U.S. Surgeon General and special adviser to Governor Ducey on public health emergency preparedness, to share ways we can work together to reduce the spread of COVID-19 in Arizona. Hospitals are stretched thin dealing with seriously ill unvaccinated patients, while attending to [...]
As we continue to monitor the COVID-19 pandemic, we track important outcomes to identify the course of the disease. Hospitalization is one of those metrics that can provide additional information to public health officials to target interventions and identify groups at higher risk for more severe disease. We track hospitalization in several ways: Using syndromic [...]
Inappropriate use of antibiotics can result in antibiotic-resistant bacteria, which can cause devastating infections and death in people. However, if actions and interventions are implemented now, we can rewrite this story of resistance. According to the CDC, preventing these infections and improving antibiotic prescribing could save 37,000 lives from drug resistant infections over 5 years. By reducing [...]
An investigative article published by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel a couple of weeks ago has triggered a state by state assessment of newborn screening programs across the country. Arizona is no exception. Our newborn screening and maternal and child health teams have been reviewing our procedures and looking for ways to improve Arizona’s performance. For example, several Arizona [...]
