Preparedness – Page 43 – AZ Dept. of Health Services Director's Blog

Items in the Preparedness category will cover everything from Emergency Medical Services to vaccination programs. This division at ADHS tracks contagious disease, coordinates emergency preparedness activity, licenses EMTs and Paramedics, regulates ambulance companies, authorizes special hospital designations like cardiac care center and Level IV trauma center, issues birth and death certificates, and tracks critical health data through various sources including hospital discharge information.

Celebrating a Link in the Chain of Survival

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:53-07:00 November 2nd, 2012|Preparedness|

Every day 15 Arizonans suffer from a cardiac arrest (their heart stops). That’s 15 yesterday, today and tomorrow- adding up to more than 5,000 people in Arizona per year… which is more the 5 times the number of folks that die in car crashes. Saving lives after a cardiac arrest requires several links in the [...]

Comments Off

Lab Team Snags National Innovation Award

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:53-07:00 October 31st, 2012|Preparedness|

Your AZ Public Health Laboratory was recognized this month at the CDC Laboratory Response Network National meeting for Innovative Collaborations with AZ's first responders. We were lauded for our unique approaches to training hazmat technicians on the use of handheld analytical instruments for testing chemical and biological agents in the field and demonstrating testing capabilities available at the public health lab. [...]

The Public Health of Weather

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:53-07:00 October 30th, 2012|Preparedness|

Our Office of Environmental Health is one of only 8 states awarded a cooperative agreement with the CDC for adapting to extreme weather and its effects on public health. Heat is the number one killer among all weather related causes of death across the country and in Arizona… more than tornadoes, hurricanes, floods, and wildfires [...]

Comments Off

We Nailed Smallpox- Why Not Polio?

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:54-07:00 October 24th, 2012|Preparedness, Prevention|

Today is World Polio Day so I thought I’d throw together this post to give you an update on where we are in the global eradication effort. 2012 has been a good year so far- as the global public health system has made some real progress. This year we’re down to only 3 countries with [...]

Comments Off

Fungi in Medicine

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:57-07:00 October 9th, 2012|Preparedness|

You’ve no doubt heard about the multi-state outbreak of fungal meningitis among patients who received an epidural steroid injections recently. Here’s what we know right now: Starting sometime in September some shipments of a steroid sometimes used to relieve back pain were contaminated with a fungus called Aspergillus fumigatus. Shortly thereafter patients in 23 states [...]

2012 State by State Preparedness Report

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:58-07:00 October 2nd, 2012|General, Preparedness, Prevention|

Safeguarding the public’s health is more important than ever. Whether the threat is a disease outbreak, environmental hazard or natural disaster, the public health system works 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to keep Arizonans safe. Each year, the CDC evaluates state and local public health preparedness programs in a detailed report. This [...]

Comments Off

Protect Your Family – Get Rid of Drugs

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:58-07:00 September 28th, 2012|Behavioral Health, Preparedness, Prevention|

Prescription drugs serve a very important purpose in health care, when they’re used the right way. That’s why physicians have to write the prescriptions – doctors who are trained to understand the purpose of the medication as well as the patient’s tolerance and the possibility of interactions. However, too many times, we keep medication after [...]

Comments Off

Takin’ it to the Streets

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:58-07:00 September 28th, 2012|Preparedness|

We just found out that AZ had 3 oral abstracts accepted (including the #1 scored abstract) for this year’s National Association of EMS Physicians meeting. Of the 208 abstracts submitted, only 15 were selected for oral presentations. We get to do 3 because AZ submitted 3 of the top 15 scored abstracts. Our Statewide Cardiac Receiving Center abstract was the [...]

Comments Off

The Answer is Blowin’ in the Wind

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:50:59-07:00 September 19th, 2012|Preparedness, Prevention|

Another AZ monsoon season has come and gone. The seasonal winds blow more than dust in the air, they stir up questions and concerns about Valley Fever. Those who have been in Arizona for a while may know that Valley Fever is a lung infection caused by a fungus that’s common in our desert soil (below [...]

Comments Off

Global Stakeholders

By Will Humble| 2017-02-10T09:51:01-07:00 August 30th, 2012|Preparedness, Prevention|

I often get good feedback about the things that we're accomplishing and the decisions that we're making... but it's not often that I get feedback from the other side of the globe- but that's just what happened this week. Kyoung-Jun Song, MD, an emergency physician in South Korea sent me an e-mail this week thanking [...]

Comments Off

Previous 41 42 43 44 45 Next

ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES

Health and Wellness for All Arizonans

ARIZONA DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH SERVICES

Health and Wellness for All Arizonans

ARIZONA DEPARTMENT
OF HEALTH SERVICES