Arizona State Public Health Laboratory

Protecting Arizonans at every stage of life at the AZ State Health Lab

By |2024-01-19T14:59:05-07:00January 19th, 2024|General, Newborn Screening, Preparedness|

The Arizona State Public Health Laboratory protects you and your loved ones in ways you may not realize. In addition to licensure and certification services for laboratories across Arizona, the state lab tests air, food, water, and clinical samples for a murderer’s row of public health threats, including tuberculosis, heavy metal toxins, pesticides, and radioactive [...]

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Healthy start: ADHS Lab checks the health of Arizona’s newborns

By |2023-09-27T11:00:07-07:00September 27th, 2023|Preparedness|

Every year since 2010,  Arizona parents have brought an average of 80,000 newborns into the world! And every year, health professionals at the Arizona State Public Health Laboratory test around 160,000 blood spot specimens  to make sure those newborns have the best possible health at the start of  their lives. Through ADHS, Arizona is one [...]

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Testing wastewater provides early warning for public health challenges

By |2023-01-18T09:28:16-07:00January 18th, 2023|Preparedness|

Before the first case of influenza was reported in the Flagstaff area this fall, public health researchers from ADHS and Coconino County Health and Human Services already knew it was coming. How? By testing wastewater for signs of influenza. Wastewater surveillance for signs of specific diseases is a new and growing tool for public health [...]

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Arizona State Lab has Vital Role in Protecting Public Health

By |2019-04-25T08:51:58-07:00April 25th, 2019|Preparedness|

At the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS), we have about 100 public health laboratory staff who work hard every day to detect critical infectious diseases, test suspicious substances, screen drinking water for contaminants, conduct early identification of genetic and metabolic disorders in newborns, inspect and license clinical and environmental labs across Arizona, and work [...]

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Annual State-by-State Report on Public Health Preparedness

By |2019-02-12T08:02:14-07:00February 12th, 2019|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 [...]

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World Rabies Day Celebrates its 10 Year Anniversary

By |2017-09-27T09:56:17-07:00September 27th, 2017|Preparedness|

On September 28th, partners around the globe will celebrate the 10th anniversary of World Rabies Day to raise awareness about the impact of rabies and how to prevent the disease. Rabies is a virus that can cause serious damage to the nervous system of humans and animals, and is almost always fatal once symptoms develop. [...]

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Water Screening in Child Care Facilities

By |2017-09-18T08:59:22-07:00September 18th, 2017|Licensing, Preparedness|

Starting this month, ADHS will be launching a project to screen water in many licensed child care facilities for lead. Our Child Care Licensing surveyors will collect water from a sample of drinking water sources at facilities while they’re out to conduct facility inspections. The surveyors will bring the water samples to our Arizona State [...]

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Newborn Screening Program Adds SCID Testing to Program Today

By |2017-08-09T10:04:29-07:00August 9th, 2017|Newborn Screening|

The State Public Health Lab Newborn Screening Program started testing for Severe Combined Immunodeficiency (SCID) syndrome on August 9. SCID is the name for a group of inherited disorders that cause babies to be born without a working immune system, putting them at risk for getting serious infections and death. Governor Doug Ducey signed legislation [...]

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Opioid Update: Blood Screening, Grant Funding and Emergency Rule for Licensed Facilities

By |2017-08-07T15:30:21-07:00August 7th, 2017|Prevention|

We continue to make steady progress in addressing the statewide opioid epidemic. Last week we expanded blood screening at the State Public Health Lab, announced a $505,104 grant award from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and issued emergency rules for licensed healthcare facilities. The State Public Health Lab is now screening blood samples [...]

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Flu Virus Lingers in Arizona in Summer Months

By |2017-07-06T09:09:25-07:00July 6th, 2017|Preparedness|

While summer may be in full swing, the influenza season is lingering longer than usual here in Arizona. In June, we typically see around 200 laboratory confirmed influenza cases. This year there were nearly 1,300 confirmed influenza cases in June . Our ADHS disease detectives and county health departments monitor influenza activity all year. In [...]

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