Updates & News

Governor Ducey Secures Approval for Major Disaster Declaration for Arizona

Mon, 6 Apr 2020 17:48:24 GMT

The Governor's Office announced on April 4 that President Trump has approved a Major Disaster Declaration for Arizona.

The disaster declaration will provide Arizona access to expanded mental health care, supplement the efforts of tribal health care workers, provide grants to reduce the risk of loss of life or property during future emergencies, make available legal assistance to low-income Arizonans, expand food assistance and other services to low-income households impacted by COVID-19 and more.

Call for Presentations - Annual Conference

Tue, 1 Jan 2019 05:00:00 GMT

AHPCO is now accepting presentations submissions for our upcoming Conference. Click Here for more info.

Opioid Crisis - Reporting Requirement Extended

Fri, 6 Oct 2017 21:09:09 GMT

Recent data has revealed that in 2016, more than two Arizonans died each day due to opioid-related causes, with a tripling in the number of deaths due to heroin since 2012. On June 5, 2017, Governor Doug Ducey issued his first public health emergency declaration, which called for a statewide effort to reduce opioid deaths in Arizona. An Enhanced Surveillance Advisory following the declaration resulted in 280 suspected opioid deaths and 2,361 suspected overdoses reported since June 15th.

As Governor Ducey's Executive Order related to opioids approaches its conclusion, AzDHS has amended the rules in 9 A.A.C. 4 to include Article 6 - Opioid Poisoning-Related Reporting. This will maintain a surveillance system for opioid overdoses, similar to other non-communicable diseases. These emergency rules have been approved and are effective immediately.

A webinar is scheduled for October 11 to address the questions and concerns required reporters may have regarding the emergency rules, data collection purpose, processes, and outcomes. Click here to RSVP for the webinar.

The public health emergency declaration directed the Arizona Department of Health Services (AzDHS) to submit a report of the accomplished activities and identify recommendations for combating the opioid epidemic in Arizona. This report, in response to the emergency declaration, is intended to be an action plan that will serve as a catalyst to reducing deaths from opioids in Arizona.
click here to view the state's Action Plan.
click here to view the real-time data for Arizona.
click here to view the training schedule.
send questions about reporting to azopioid@azdhs.gov.
(Note: healthcare professionals or administrators of a health care institution licensed under 9 AAC 10 are required to report under the executive order and under the emergency rules).

Battelle N95 Mask Decontamination Unit in AZ

Wed, 6 May 2020 02:49:06 GMT

The Battelle’s Critical Care Decontamination Systems ™ (CCDS) has been shipped to Phoenix, AZ. The units will take a few days to arrive, but after set up and testing, it should be processing used masks next week. We have deployed units in NY (Long Island and Brooklyn), Seattle, Chicago, and Boston and its described as a game changer for hospitals and health care providers. And thanks to an agreement we signed with the federal government, the service is available at “no charge.”

Also, we’re hiring staff to help support our ramp up efforts, including in Phoenix. You’re welcome to share https://jobs.battelle.org/ListJobs?Keyword=CCDS

For organizations within Arizona that would like to learn more about how to enroll in this program, they can contact Battelle directly www.solutions@battelle.org/N95 and fill out the Battelle CCDS^TM inquiry form.

Arizona is Leading the Way in Improving End-of-Life Care

Mon, 21 Jan 2019 17:48:10 GMT

AHPCO is a founding Collaborative Partner in Thoughtful Life Conversations. To learn more, visit: https://www.thoughtfullifeconversations.org/

AzHHA’s Thoughtful Life Conversations (TLC) initiative made great strides to improve end-of-life care across our state in 2018. Last year also brought us new statewide data that has helped us understand where we are currently and will help inform our goals for the future.

In December TLC released its first End-of-Life Care Report that includes five different types of data:

Medicare Data – This section shares data points that are impacting the experience we have at the end-of-life.
Hospice Data - Inpatient days, Emergency Department visits, and ICU Days prior to death are opportunities for improved conversations about prognosis and treatment options the last year of life.
Physician Views - In this survey 450+ Arizona physicians participated, 68% of which care for patients near their end-of-life.
Advance Directory Registry - Is the Advance Directive Registry data a reliable measure of success for work being done in the field?
Statewide Public Survey - Roughly 900 Arizonans were asked about who is having end of life care conversations.

Arizona Board of Nursing Announces Changes for CNAs

Mon, 2 May 2016 01:04:15 GMT

The Arizona Board of Nursing recently announced it will be changing it's regulatory model to include 2 levels of nursing assistants: Certified Nursing Assistants (CNA) and Licensed Nursing Assistant (LNA). This change becomes effective July 1, 2016.

Resources:

Nov 7 - Fall Conference Save the Date!

Thu, 29 May 2014 17:21:16 GMT