My wife has been disturbed by the number of scorpions she's seen around our house and garage over the last couple of weeks which has inspired me to do this scorpion post. Arizona has more than 56 species of scorpions but the bark scorpion is the biggie. Since you live in the bark scorpion’s territory, you probably [...]
HHS’ Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality just released the Asthma Return-on-Investment (ROI) Calculator for exploring potential financial returns from quality improvement and disease management programs for populations diagnosed with asthma. The tool provides estimates based on an analysis of 52 research studies on improving asthma care and what those studies imply for cost savings. [...]
The Arizona State Hospital will be hosting a Job Fair next Wednesday (July 9) 9 am to Noon at 501 N. 24th Street, Phoenix. We’re looking for folks that might be interested in joining our team at the Arizona State Hospital. We’ll be recruiting for various positions like Psychiatric RN’s, Psychologists, Psychiatric Nursing Shift Supervisors, Mental [...]
With the monsoon comes an increase in foodborne illnesses in Arizona. While outdoor pool parties, barbeques, and family gatherings are cool, it’s important to remember some tips for handling food safely to protect your family and guests from a nasty bout of foodborne illnesses. According to the CDC, reducing foodborne illness by just 10% would keep 5 million Americans [...]
Summer’s here, and we know what that means…West Nile virus season. West Nile virus is most commonly spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. However, not every mosquito can carry West Nile virus. There are 40 different species of mosquitoes in Arizona, but only 2 transmit West Nile virus (WNV) to humans effectively, Culex tarsalis and Culex quinquefasciatus [...]
Usually when you hear about Salmonella, you think about food poisoning.. but salmonellosis is also a zoonotic disease - one spread between animals and humans. Salmonella (which gets its name from the Daniel Salmon head of the USDA in 1885) is a bacteria that causes fever, diarrhea, and stomach cramps, usually within 3 days of eating or [...]
In April the FDA released proposed regulations for electronic cigarettes and asked for your input. Last week it extended the comment period by 30 days. The proposed rule focuses on FDA's regulatory approach to electronic cigarettes and other tobacco products, proposed options for the regulation of cigars, pathways to market for proposed deemed tobacco products, [...]
Navigating the vast number, type, and location of licensed facilities just got easier. Our GIS team developed a terrific interactive website that can help you find information about a specific facility or facility type in the State. The ADHS Licensed Facilities application features Long Term Care Facilities, Hospitals, group homes for folks with developmental disabilities, Residential, Medical, Childcare, and [...]
Across the country prescription painkillers take out way more people than heroin and cocaine combined... and the story is the same in Arizona. Last year more than one person died almost every day in our state from prescription opioids... and more people died from painkiller overdoses than car crashes. In January, I blogged about how we've joined the Association [...]
Improving health outcomes at licensed healthcare facilities in Arizona requires 2 main ingredients. Having regulations and encourage continuous quality improvement (which is now complete) and providing our licensed facilities with the information they need to implement practices (in accordance with the regulations) to execute positive change. Now that we’ve finished developing the new regulations, it’s [...]
