Public Health Addressing Social Determinants of Health to Improve Overall Health of Arizona
Every day, public health works to keep Arizonans healthy and well by promoting good choices like healthy eating, regular physical activity, smoking cessation, vaccinations, and injury prevention through seatbelt and helmet use. We know that these choices lead to good health, but we also know that it's not always easy—or even possible—to make these choices. Many factors, including something known as “social determinants of health," make [...]
ADHS conducts drinking water screening in child care facilities across the state
Childhood lead poisoning is considered the most preventable environmental disease among young children. Lead poisoning can negatively affect children’s intelligence, behavior, hearing, and development. The most common sources of elevated blood lead levels in Arizona are lead-based paint found in homes built before 1978, imported goods such as spices, makeups, and ceramic pottery, lead in dust and soil, as well [...]
Annual State-by-State Report on Public Health Preparedness
Every year, Trust for America’s Health releases a report that shows their rankings of states’ public health preparedness. Like most years, this year’s report uses a combination of measures that may or may not be under the control of state health departments to develop their state rankings. Arizona shows up in the bottom tier of this year’s report, although the report highlights [...]
Sharing Public Health Data in New Ways
Public health professionals use data to drive decisions about public health priorities, the need for new programs or policies, and the effectiveness of public health intervention. However, without clear and accessible data, it’s difficult to make informed decisions. That’s why over the last several years, we’ve worked hard to improve our data displays to enhance the clarity of the data [...]
Measles outbreaks highlight the importance of vaccination
Earlier this week, the State of Washington declared a public health emergency due to a measles outbreak that has infected nearly 40 people to date. Luckily, no Arizonans have been infected with measles associated with this outbreak, but the fact that measles outbreaks still occur underscores the importance of up-to-date vaccination for all children. ADHS strongly supports vaccination as the [...]
STDs are on the rise in Arizona
We’ve just released our 2017 STD Annual Report, which shows that the number of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) reported in Arizona continues to increase. The latest data indicates a 16% increase in STDs from 2016 to 2017, with STDs in Arizona on the rise for over a decade. Over 54,000 STDs were reported in Arizona in 2017, including cases of [...]