Arizona Department of Health Services, Director’s Blog

New Public Awareness Campaign Seeks to Protect Kids from Nicotine

vape-is-a-lie4Last week we released our new public awareness campaign, Vape is a Lie, that teaches kids in Arizona about the potential dangers of using e-cigarettes. Nicotine is a highly addictive chemical that can have several negative effects on your health. There is no safe level of nicotine for children.

After the […]

By | October 31st, 2016|Prevention|Comments Off on New Public Awareness Campaign Seeks to Protect Kids from Nicotine

Largest Measles Outbreak of the Year Just got Bigger (but don’t worry!)

measles-virionEven though the largest measles outbreak of the year officially ended on August 8, the work did not stop there. State and local disease detectives, along with CDC, continued to review all rash illnesses reported in the detention center before the first measles cases were identified. The goal was to […]

By | October 28th, 2016|Preparedness|Comments Off on Largest Measles Outbreak of the Year Just got Bigger (but don’t worry!)

Medical Marijuana Allocations Completed

Medical Marijuana Dispensary SymbolOn October 6, our Medical Marijuana program concluded the processing of medical marijuana dispensary applications by holding a random selection process for applications meeting the criteria. Our staff worked with accountants on the process which included nine random selections.

Our Digital Media Team provided live stream video of […]

By | October 27th, 2016|Licensing|2 Comments

MRSA Prevention is Critical to Healthcare Safety

mrsaOctober is MRSA awareness month, and October 2 was World MRSA Day. MRSA, short for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, is a bacterial infection that is resistant to many types of antibiotics.  These events help raise the awareness of MRSA around the globe and to activate survivors, communities, governments, healthcare officials, […]

By | October 26th, 2016|Preparedness, Prevention|Comments Off on MRSA Prevention is Critical to Healthcare Safety

New Campaign Teaches Arizona Youth about the Dangers of E-cigarettes

This week we launched a new public awareness campaign called “Vape is a Lie” teaches youth about the dangers of nicotine and e-cigarettes. Vape is a Lie features a series of three public service announcements and a website, Vapeisalie.org, where Arizona youth can learn more about the dangerous chemicals often found in e-cigarettes, commonly referred to as vape […]

By | October 25th, 2016|Prevention|Comments Off on New Campaign Teaches Arizona Youth about the Dangers of E-cigarettes

Lead Poisoning Prevention Week Helps Families Stay Safe

lead-poisoning-prevention-weekThis week, we acknowledge National Lead Poisoning Prevention Week and this year’s important theme: Lead Free Kids for a Healthy Future.  The Arizona Department of Health Services is participating in this event along with CDC, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and other […]

By | October 24th, 2016|Preparedness|Comments Off on Lead Poisoning Prevention Week Helps Families Stay Safe