One Health is the idea that the health of humans, animals and the environment are all connected. As people, we depend on animals for many things, like food, companionship, and recreation. Animals depend on us to provide care, husbandry, safe homes and habitats. In turn, people and animals both depend on a balanced and healthy [...]
Weather hazards like extreme heat, flash flooding, dust storms, and wildfires often occur this time of year in Arizona. Last week, ADHS partnered with ASU to put together an interactive workshop where over 20 representatives from local health departments, environmental services, emergency management, transportation, weather service, and universities discussed weather hazards and the populations most [...]
Family, fireworks, food, and fun are four great reasons for a 4th of July celebration. It is also a great time to fire up the grill and prepare delicious summertime meals. Just don’t let foodborne illness spoil the fun. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimate that 1 out of 6 Americans will become sick this year and 128,000 [...]
For many people Independence Day wouldn’t be complete without fireworks. There are dozens of public fireworks shows around the state, but some people like shooting them at home. Fireworks are legal in Arizona although some communities have banned them due to wildfire concerns . The best thing you can do to keep your family safe [...]
In public health, we know that flu is unpredictably affecting different populations at different times with different strains (remember the drift in 2014). Last week, CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) recommended that due to low vaccine effectiveness, the nasal spray flu vaccine not be used this upcoming flu season. Once finalized by CDC, these recommendations will [...]
Mosquito season is upon us, which means it’s time to find ways to prevent and control mosquitoes around your home. Let’s all mark National Mosquito Control Awareness Week this week by protecting our families and communities from mosquito-borne disease. Arizona is home to more than 40 different types of mosquitoes, including the Culex and Aedes [...]
Our Human Resources team will be hosting on-site career events at the Arizona State Hospital (ASH) as well as increasing our recruiting efforts for the rest of the agency. The career events at ASH will be recruiting for critical positions including: Registered Nurses, Behavioral Health Technicians/MHPS 3's and Hospital Security at ASH; Epidemiologists in Public [...]
Last week we hosted a two-day workshop on improving surveillance capacity for diseases spread by mosquitoes with the Defense Threat Reduction Agency and the International Society of Disease Surveillance (ISDS). ISDS's mission of bringing ideas to actions with measurable impact on public health practice, helped our Office of Infectious Disease Services to develop new ways to better inform our response [...]
We’re seeing a downward trend in Arizona with youth tobacco prevalence that is similar to the national trend , according to the Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance System survey. The percentage of Arizona’s high school youth who have ever tried smoking has decreased from 46.5 percent in 2011 to 37 percent in 2015, a decrease of almost 20 [...]
