The Arizona Department of Health Services is now a nationally accredited public health agency! This week the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) awarded our agency this prominent designation that recognizes the innovative work we do to improve and protect the health of the public by advancing and transforming the quality of our statewide public health system.

We’re excited and honored to achieve national accreditation that recognizes the success our public health programs have in improving the health and wellness of our communities statewide. To gain this national accreditation, PHAB evaluated the effectiveness of ADHS’s public health programs and our continuous quality improvement process. After a site visit from PHAB in July, it was clear our dedicated ­­­staff operate effective programs that are improving the health of people in Arizona.

We submitted thousands of documents that supported the PHAB standards and measures for evaluating processes and services, outcomes, and progress toward specific goals and objectives. The documents included a large variety of examples that included presentations to stakeholders, needs assessments for vulnerable populations, and information about technical assistance provided to community partners that improved the public health system in Arizona.

This accreditation could not have been done without the incredible work of our dedicated public health team. Our agency joins county health departments in Maricopa, Mohave, Pima, and Yavapai counties as national accredited public health agencies in Arizona!