If you haven’t been vaccinated, protect yourself by getting your flu shot today. Just like putting on your seat belt, getting vaccinated can save you a trip to the hospital. If you or your children are sick with influenza, take precautions like staying home when you’re sick and covering your nose and mouth when coughing and sneezing. [...]
On Saturday November 18, ADHS and Maricopa County Department of Public Health join in a new partnership with the Wildlife World Zoo to host a free influenza vaccine clinic accompanied with outreach on disease prevention. Last year at the Phoenix Zoo, the “Protect You and the Zoo from the Flu” event was successful in allowing public health officials to [...]
The 2017–2018 influenza season has arrived in Arizona! Since the beginning of October, Arizona has had 92 laboratory-confirmed cases of influenza reported from 10 counties, compared to 20 cases at this time last year. This means if you and your family haven’t gotten vaccinated yet, now is the time. The influenza vaccine is the best [...]
The 2016 Vaccine-Preventable Diseases Annual Report was released by the Office of Infectious Disease Services this past week. It highlights five vaccine-preventable diseases that disease detectives track and monitor, tasks that are critical to help identify cases and reduce further spread to others. This report covers the largest measles outbreak in the nation for 2016, [...]
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 [...]
Proper immunization throughout the lifespan is one of the most important steps that individuals can take to protect their health, their children’s health, and the health of the community. Each year, a group of health and medical experts called the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices creates recommended vaccination schedules for children and adolescents as well [...]
Influenza activity is now widespread in Arizona with more than 750 cases reported in Arizona last week. That’s more than double the number of cases from last week. There have been nearly 3,300 lab-confirmed cases reported this influenza season in our state, but we know that this is just the tip of the iceberg. We tend to see our [...]
Public health officials regularly explore new and creative ways to promote health and wellness for Arizonans. On Saturday November 5, our staff and Maricopa County Department of Public Health (MCDPH) join in a new partnership with the Phoenix Zoo to host a free flu vaccine clinic accompanied with outreach on disease prevention. Last year’s flu [...]
Influenza season has officially started in Arizona with the first locally-acquired case confirmed late last week. If you and your family haven't been vaccinated for influenza this season, the time is now. The CDC recommends annual influenza vaccination for everyone six months and older. Getting vaccinated is the best way to prevent influenza, but it [...]
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 [...]
