The Internet is here to stay. While that should be fairly obvious to just about everyone, government sometimes seems a bit slow to catch on. That’s not the case in Arizona, and certainly isn’t true at the Arizona Department of Health Services. We’ve long been a leader in providing services to you, our customers, through new and innovative means for many years. That commitment will never change.

In the past few weeks as part of fulfilling that commitment, ADHS introduced DAVE. DAVE is very likable, but he’s not a person, and really, you won’t see much of DAVE because he is the Database Application for Vital Events, the technical operating system that makes important documents available to our customers.

Up to now, customers have had to visit a state or county health office to get this kind of document. But through this online portal ADHS uses is a secure system that gives you the option of requesting a Certificate of Birth, Certificate of Death or Certificate of Fetal Death online, at your convenience.

This new tool creates a more efficient – not to mention modern – way of doing business. By now, people are used to buying everything from cars to wine on the web. And it’s hardly unusual to pay utility bills, verify a home loan or update your car’s registration with the click of a button.

State agencies like ADHS are responding to that marketplace at a rapid pace. It’s part of Governor Doug Ducey’s Arizona Management System, which is designed to bring accountability, transparency and efficiency to state government.

In the month or so since has become a reality, we’ve learned that whatever challenges we’ve faced were more typical of what can happen in the course of everyday business as opposed to any systemic concerns. With that in mind, we’re – as always – keeping an eye on our performance and we welcome suggestions for continuous improvement.