Recent events, such as the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), highlight the need for public health preparedness programs at the local, state, and federal levels. A primary role of public health agencies is to help protect the public from such disease outbreaks and disasters. However, it can be difficult to know just how prepared we are [...]
On Sunday, Jan. 26, the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) announced that a Maricopa County resident has been diagnosed with the 2019 Novel Coronavirus. The confirmed case is in a person who recently returned from travel to Wuhan, China. The case is a member of the Arizona State University community who does not live [...]
The ADHS Bureau of Emergency Medical Services & Trauma System has launched a new public-facing, trauma data dashboard. This tool allows the public to view an interactive report on trauma and injury in Arizona based on information from Arizona’s 47 trauma centers. The Arizona State Trauma Registry collects information about patients who are injured, and [...]
Our Office of Infectious Disease Services has released the 2017 and 2018 Infectious Disease Outbreak Report. This comprehensive report uses data collected during investigations of outbreaks reported to and investigated by public health. An outbreak is defined as an increase in cases of disease in time or place that is greater than expected. The public [...]
The 20th Annual National Adoption Day event was held on Saturday, November 23 and for the 8th year in a row, our Bureau of Vital Records Team participated in the event. The annual event is held to raise awareness for foster-care children nationwide who are waiting to find their forever families. Adoptions for foster children [...]
Every five years, the HIV Surveillance Program at ADHS produces an integrated epidemiologic profile that describes the characteristics of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWH) in Arizona. The 2013-2017 Integrated Epidemiologic Profile provides a five-year snapshot of the sociodemographic, geographic, and behavioral factors associated with HIV/AIDS, along with health outcomes among PLWH. This report is a [...]
The holidays are a time for gathering with friends and family. Inevitably, this will also be a time when you may find yourself surrounded by lots and lots of food. In order to keep you and your loved ones healthy and avoid foodborne illness, let’s start with some basics: Wash your hands. Washing your hands [...]
For more than 40 years, the American Cancer Society has hosted the Great American Smokeout on the third Thursday of November. The event is an opportunity for people who smoke to commit to healthy, smoke-free lives by encouraging smokers to use the date to make a plan to quit or to quit smoking that day. [...]
Valley fever is a potentially debilitating and deadly respiratory disease caused by the Coccidioides fungus that affects thousands of Arizonans every year. Valley Fever Awareness Week (Nov. 9–17) was a success with social media messaging, promoting the poster contest, and launching a new data dashboard. Although Valley Fever Awareness Week is over, raising awareness of this [...]
Earlier this month, CDC released the 2018 National and State Healthcare-Associated Infections (HAI) Progress Report based on National Healthcare Safety Network (NHSN) data. NHSN is the nation’s most widely used HAI surveillance system by facilities, states, regions, quality groups, and national public health agencies including CDC. This annual report provides an update on previous reports, [...]
