Arizona, like every state in the country, is battling an epidemic of people misusing and abusing prescription drugs. We’ve been working with several partners on the Arizona Prescription Drug Misuse & Abuse Initiative since 2012 to reduce the problem in Arizona. The Initiative team recently developed a comprehensive toolkit designed to assist communities to tackle prescription drug abuse at the [...]
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than 4 million Americans are living with viral hepatitis and more than 20,000 die every year from hepatitis-related infections. Viral hepatitis is the leading cause of liver cancer and the most common reason for liver transplantation. Two types of viral hepatitis, B and C, are [...]
Getting kids to eat healthy is hard, especially for busy moms. The Arizona WIC program now offers new foods to help families provide nutritious meals. Yogurt, whole wheat pasta, and new brands of cereal and baby foods for older babies are now available through the WIC program. The full list of foods includes many fresh, frozen and canned vegetables, [...]
Public health has reach into many areas that you may not think about. Currently we’re working to reduce the number of prescription drug overdoses and deaths. The misuse of prescription drugs is a national epidemic. We’re working with the Arizona Criminal Justice Commission to attack the problem here. The funding for our prevention efforts comes from the Preventive Health and [...]
This past weekend, we held the fourth annual “Empowering Habits and Empowering Lives” Empower Conference. More than 250 Early Care and Education professionals from all over Arizona participated in the all-day meeting. Conference participants explored the Empower Program's 10 Standards to Empower Children to Live Healthy Lives and learned how to be more effective through developing cultural [...]
In Arizona it doesn’t have to be summer for the temperatures to soar. With the first 100 degree day in Phoenix today, we know the scorching heat is right around the corner. High outdoor temperatures aren’t just an inconvenience; they’re dangerous. Heat is the number one killer weather-related cause of death in Arizona and across [...]
At the end of March, the men’s overflow shelter closed in downtown Phoenix. The shelter housed up to 350 homeless men at full capacity. The city condemned the building for asbestos. We’re one of many community partners responding to the housing needs of vulnerable people in Arizona. Our permanent supportive housing program will provide an [...]
Vaccines are scientifically proven to be the best way to prevent the spread of many communicable diseases. Yet, through the last decade, Arizona along with the rest of the country has seen an increase in the number of families choosing not to vaccinate their children. A recent outbreak that started at Disneyland created a firestorm of interest in vaccinations, [...]
The Bureau of Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and Trauma System recently surveyed nearly 200 EMS agencies across the state to determine (1) whether they had or intended to begin a community paramedicine program, (2) if so, which medical conditions they intend to focus on and (3) what type of services they intend to provide. The data [...]
Our Women’s and Children’s Health team administers the federal maternal Child Health Block Grant. This grant is authorized through Title V of the Social Security Act and has been in place since 1935. Every 5 years we look at the health and well-being of Arizona’s women and children and develop our top priorities based on [...]
