Arizona Department of Health Services, Director’s Blog

STAND Continues to Thrive as a National Model for Youth Engagement in Public Health

The Douglas City Council voted July 12 to increase the age to purchase tobacco and vaping products from 18 years of age to 21 years of age, which is an initiative known as Tobacco 21 or T21. It is now the second community in Arizona and the first border community within Arizona to do so.

This initiative was brought to the […]

By | July 17th, 2017|Prevention|Comments Off on STAND Continues to Thrive as a National Model for Youth Engagement in Public Health

Opioid Response Update: Updated Data, Naloxone Trainings, Emergency Rule Making

With three weeks of real time data reported to us, there has been 661 possible opioid overdoses in Arizona, with 8 percent of those resulting in death. This is cumulative data since Governor Ducey’s executive order for enhanced surveillance went into effect on June 15. The report for June 15 to July […]

By | July 14th, 2017|Prevention|Comments Off on Opioid Response Update: Updated Data, Naloxone Trainings, Emergency Rule Making

Keep Your Skin Safe in the Sun this Summer

Temperatures in many areas of the state won’t be dwindling down anytime soon, so practicing good sun safety is important. Wearing sunscreen every day is the one of the best ways to protect yourself from the sun’s harmful rays. Even on cloudy days, the sun’s rays can damage your skin. Wear sunscreen with […]

By | July 13th, 2017|Preparedness|Comments Off on Keep Your Skin Safe in the Sun this Summer

Summer Lunch Buddies Helps Kids Eat Healthy Meals

Each summer, free healthy meals are available to children ages 18 and younger at approved sites across Arizona as part of the Summer Lunch Buddies program. Sites are operated by schools, nonprofit agencies or local governments and are located in low-income neighborhoods where many children receive free or reduced price school breakfast and […]

By | July 11th, 2017|Prevention|Comments Off on Summer Lunch Buddies Helps Kids Eat Healthy Meals

Highly Skilled Disease Investigators Help Prevent Illnesses

One of the important cogs in the public health wheel is a skilled communicable disease investigator (CDI). These are dedicated professionals from various educational backgrounds, including nursing, environmental health, life or behavioral sciences, and public health/epidemiology. Enteric disease investigators are CDIs that specialize in diseases that affect the intestines, usually causing symptoms […]

By | July 10th, 2017|Preparedness|Comments Off on Highly Skilled Disease Investigators Help Prevent Illnesses

Opioid Response Update: More Real Time Data Reported

This week marks our second week of posting a report of real time data reported to us from healthcare providers, first responders, law enforcement agencies, and pharmacists in our coordinated response to the alarming increase in opioid deaths in Arizona. The data is cumulative since June 15, with a total of 444 […]

By | July 7th, 2017|Prevention|Comments Off on Opioid Response Update: More Real Time Data Reported