Our Licensing & Rulemaking teams have spent the past two years working with numerous associations and stakeholders from various licensed facilities as part of our regulatory reform initiative. The last legislative session extended our “exempt” rulemaking authority through April of 2014. This gave us the unique opportunity to live with the new rules for a [...]
March 1 was the kickoff of the new Arizona Farmers’ Market Nutrition season for women and children who participate in the AZ Women, Infants and Children program. WIC participants are beginning to receive their Farmers’ Market checks to spend for fresh, locally grown, fruits and vegetables at farmers’ markets. WIC moms and their kids receive [...]
Data collection and analysis is public health’s most valuable renewable resource- which is why we’ve made data analysis such a high priority. Yesterday, the Office of the Inspector General for HHS published a document that highlights the fact that disciplined data analyses can identify key factors that result in poor outcomes- giving us the information [...]
Have you ever wondered — Why do people get sick? How can we prevent the spread of disease? What do doctors REALLY do? If so, the U of A College of Medicine in Phoenix has a summer program for you! Be a part of Med-Start Phoenix, a two-week day program with a fast paced curriculum [...]
The latest CDC obesity data published in this week’s Journal of the American Medical Association found a significant decline in obesity among kids aged 2 to 5. Obesity prevalence for this age group declined by 43% in the last 8 years (from 14% in 2004 to 8% in 2012. While the precise reasons for the [...]
Our Licensing team promotes and protects public health and safety by addressing quality of care issues. Last week we hosted a forum for our licensed midwives to learn more about our programs and resources to bring them up to speed on our newest initiatives related to maternal and child health so they'll have the latest tools [...]
Maybe you heard news reports this week about kids in California with a “polio-like syndrome.” Here's a synopsis: Over the last 18 months, 5 kids have been identified by California’s Department of Public Health with a paralysis in one or more limbs. Multiple tests have been run on them. Poliovirus wasn't found, but enterovirus-68 was isolated in 2 of the cases. There are hundreds [...]
There’s widespread agreement within the public health community that the percentage of women who deliver by Cesarean Section these days is too high. In fact, 1/3 of women in the US have cesarean deliveries these days (up from 9.5% in 1990 and 23% in 2008). Last week the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and [...]
Tomorrow Rural/Metro will hold two events in the East Valley to help parents make sure they have the right seat for their kids and the seats are properly installed. They will also collect gently used and new car seats so the state can donate them to families in need in Mexico. Rural/Metro is a partner [...]
The USDA announced proposed new guidelines for school wellness policies as part of the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 this week. The new policies set goals in nutrition, physical activity, and other school-based activities promoting student wellness. Additionally, the school wellness policies include a guideline on food marketing in schools, setting a standard that [...]
