The role of a surveyor can be a difficult one. Our team of licensing surveyors need to maintain neutrality as regulators and be able to apply the Arizona Administrative Code (otherwise known as “the rules”) to a wide variety of facilities within the healthcare system. Part of our surveillance includes investigating complaints- which can be generated from [...]
Did you know that 19.6% of people in Arizona live in poverty, and 1 in 5 households are unable to afford to buy food for their families It doesn't help that one of the places people turn to for help, St. Mary's Food Bank, reports that it has 40% less food on the shelves to [...]
Our team just returned from a field inspection for a dispensary applicant in Glendale. There were no major deficiencies, and we awarded the dispensary an “approval to operate” late this afternoon. This is the first dispensary approval to operate we’ve issued in the State. By law, we’re not allowed to publicly disclose the address. The [...]
Today is the 37th Annual Great American Smokeout®. Sponsored by the American Cancer Society, the annual event challenges smokers to start the quit process by joining thousands of other Americans in quitting for the day. The thought being - if you can quit for a day, you can quit for life. Across the state the Arizona [...]
One of the things you learn in business school is the importance of using the concept of a “target market” as a core of your business marketing plan. That’s what we do when it comes to tobacco cessation. We examine our tobacco surveillance data and look at demographic patterns for target populations and look for the [...]
A child’s death is a tragedy, not only for family and friends but also for the community as a whole. Unfortunately, over 2 children die each day in Arizona. In 2011, 837 children died. This was a decline from 2010 when 862 children died. In fact, since 2005, Arizona has seen a decline in child [...]
In September I blogged about how we and Maricopa County Public Health entered into a partnership with the Arizona Small Business Association and Viridian Health Management to train Arizona employers on the implementation of worksite wellness. I’m happy to share with you that the Healthy Arizona Worksites program has launched. The purpose of the Healthy [...]
The March of Dimes just released its annual report card marking how well states are doing in the battle to lower the percentage of babies born prematurely. Being born too soon can cause long-term disabilities in children including cerebral palsy, developmental delay, respiratory problems and vision and hearing problems. Sadly, prematurity is also the leading [...]
For the 5th year in a row, we’re participating in the Undy 5000 fun walk/run on November 17th. This event helps increase awareness of colon cancer and encourages folks to bite the bullet and get screened. The run raises money for the Colon Cancer Alliance and half the profits stay here in Arizona. Half is spent [...]
Those who have been in Arizona for a while may know that Valley Fever is a lung infection caused by a fungus that is common in the soil here. In most cases, people with Valley Fever have very mild symptoms like cough, fatigue and shortness of breath that they may confuse with the common cold. [...]
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