Nurses are vital to the health of all Arizonans
At the Arizona Department of Health Services, our nurses are involved in the prevention, education, advocacy, activism, assessment, and evaluation of public health across our state. They play an essential role in preventing disease and educating the public to promote communities’ health and safety. We’re proud to have nurses in Newborn Screening who work to follow up with families regarding [...]
Public Health Week: Improving public health across our state
As Arizona's statewide public health agency, we spent much of last week celebrating National Public Health Week by focusing on you and your community, wherever you are in Arizona. Our hope was to draw more attention to the issues that are important to improving the public's health and the power of community across our state. The overall message - Centering [...]
ADHS initiatives are working to improve healthcare access in Arizona’s most rural communities
Fourteen percent of the U.S. population lives in rural areas, in Arizona that number is much higher at 25%, likely due to the landscape and environment we live in. USDA Economic Research Service found that residents living in the United States’ most rural counties may have more difficulty finding and using health care services in comparison to their counterparts in [...]
How Arizona is using data and community feedback to help address mental health in our state
Like physical health, mental health is important throughout the lifespan. It continuously affects how we think, feel, and act. It also plays an important role in our physical and social well-being. Many factors can impact our mental health, including early adverse life experiences, experiences related to chronic medical conditions, biological factors, feelings of loneliness or isolation, and various life stressors [...]
Improving the health of Arizonans through family planning services & community programs
Programming for reproductive and sexual health improves the health of women of childbearing age before, during, and after pregnancy. An estimated 2 million unplanned pregnancies are prevented each year due to family planning services obtained through Title X, Medicaid, and other publicly funded programs. The ADHS Family Planning Program offers a statewide, clinic-based approach. Cost-effective comprehensive family planning and reproductive [...]
Bringing awareness to violence prevention to improve the safety of our communities
Public health draws on a science base that is multi-disciplinary. This allows us to gather knowledge from a broad range of disciplines including medicine, epidemiology, sociology, psychology, criminology, education, and economics. Coupled with a cross-sector approach, public health is poised to tackle violence prevention that strives to provide the maximum benefit for the largest number of people. Experiencing any forms [...]