Web-Based EMT Certification Coming Soon
As our IT team was developing the electronic medical marijuana application tool they started seeing that the code they were writing had potential uses in other parts of the agency. In other words- that the basics of the Code could be used to electronify some of our other business lines. We looked for areas that consumed the most manual labor and [...]
Acing the Preparedness Test
Disease detection and swift and effective public health interventions are essential to saving lives in a public health emergency. According to a new report from the CDC on Public Health Preparedness, Arizona's public health system is ready and well-prepared. The CDC report outlines the Department’s ability to detect and respond to a wide range of public health threats including our ability [...]
Sharpening the Axe
There's a well-known quote attributed to Abe Lincoln that goes something like this: "Give me 6 hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first 4 sharpening the axe." Maybe somebody will someday quote me as saying: "Give us 20 months to transform the delivery of behavioral health and primary care services to address the health disparities among folks with [...]
Our Unwelcome Winter Visitor Returns
Just in time for the holidays, we’re got our first lab confirmed case of influenza – actually two cases. Influenza has probably been in the state for a while now, but we don’t officially start counting the cases until there is a case confirmed at our lab. The vaccine was approved this summer and fights 3 different types of flu. If [...]
Community Health Diagnostics
Last week I wrote about the Health Care/Public Health Continuum… in which I described how in the public health world the community is the patient. In order to assess and better help the patient we need to have indicators and surveillance data to help us construct and implement interventions. One of our primary goals over the last couple of years [...]
Medicare Physician Bonus Program
The Fed’s operate a Medicare Physician Bonus Program to encourage doctors to work in underserved areas and improve access to care for folks on Medicare. Certain physicians (including MDs, DOs, dentists, podiatrists, and chiropractors) are eligible to receive a 10% bonus if they’re providing services to Medicare beneficiaries in a geographic primary care Health Professional Shortage Area (Psychiatrists practicing in [...]