CDC: Self-Reported Drunk Driving is Down

SOURCE: CDC Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, US 2006, 2008 and 2010

Drunken driving incidents have fallen 30 percent in the last five years, and last year were at their lowest mark in nearly two decades, according to a new federal report.

The decline may be due to the down economy: Other research suggests people are still drinking as heavily as in years past, so some may just be finding cheaper ways of imbibing than by going to bars, night clubs and restaurants.

"One possibility is that people are drinking at home more and driving less after drinking," said Dr. Thomas Frieden, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention


 

Unrelated and Mismatched Cord Blood Transplantation Can Still Help Children with Deadly Conditions 

An unrelated cord blood transplant, even from a mismatched donor, can be effective in treating children with a host of life-threatening diseases and disorders including cancer, sickle cell anemia, and other genetic diseases, according to researchers in the Duke Pediatric Blood and Marrow Transplantation Program. Unrelated cord blood may be easier to obtain than adult bone marrow, allowing for the treatment of more patients.

"We have done a terrific job in this country of increasing the number of volunteer donors listed in the National Marrow Donor Program registry over the past several years," said Vinod Prasad, MD, a pediatric oncologist at Duke. "But the fact remains that for many patients, finding a matched donor can be difficult. Ethnic and racial minorities have the hardest time finding a fully matched donor."


 

Breast Cancer Awareness: Who's Missing Here?

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness month.  During this annual campaign emphasis is placed on increasing awareness of the importance of early breast cancer detection.  Breast cancer treatment is most effective when the cancer has been diagnosed at an early stage and before it has spread to other parts of the body.  Typically, the focus is on women because nearly 40,000 women die of breast cancer annually.

In Georgia, the Breast and Cervical Cancer Program (BCCP) conducts breast cancer screening for low income, uninsured women age 40 to 64 through the public health departments.  Many of those women who are diagnosed with breast cancer will be eligible for the Women's Health Medicaid Program that offers full Medicaid benefits while they are in active treatment.


 

Partnerships Lead to Improvement of On-Site Septic Management on Georgia's Coast

 

Glynn County Health Department Environmental Health Manager, Bill Jenkins, uses a GPS device to map an on-site disposal system.

District 9-1 (Coastal Health District), the University of Georgia Marine Extension Service (MAREX), and several other partners have teamed up to ensure that on-site disposal systems along Georgia's coast are mapped and documented using the latest technology. The end results will help protect both homeowners and Georgia's coastal waterways.

The Coastal Health District, MAREX, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources - Environmental Protection Division, and the Southern Georgia Regional Commission are working together to conduct a survey of on-site septic systems and drinking water wells near state bodies of water in Camden, Chatham, Glynn, and McIntosh counties. Funded by the Clean Water Act, the program allows Coastal Health District Environmental Health inspectors to use global positioning system (GPS) technology to document, inventory, and map on-site disposal systems and drinking water wells that are within close proximity to natural waterways.

 

Fight Against AIDS Focuses on Latinos, Hispanics

October 15th is the last day of Hispanic Heritage Month and it marks the ninth annual commemoration of the National Latino AIDS Awareness Day (NLAAD).  Georgia Department of Public Health and its Office of HIV/AIDS take this opportunity to encourage HIV prevention, testing and treatment among the diverse community of Latinos/Hispanics living in Georgia.

Since its establishment in 2003, NLAAD has been committed to educating Latinos/Hispanics not only about HIV but also other health issues that have a dramatic impact on this population.  Latinos/Hispanics living in Georgia face a variety of challenges that place them at increased risk for HIV infection. Poverty, stigma, access to health care, and acculturation are just a few of the many barriers that make this group particularly vulnerable.


 

Text Messaging Promotes Healthier Babies 

Each year in the U.S., more than 500,000 babies are born prematurely and an estimated 28,000 children die before their first birthday-signifying a public health crisis.  

According to the 2007 birth data and ranking by the Kaiser Family Foundation, Georgia rank 45th in the nation for the number of low birth weight babies born each year.  

To help improve birth outcomes in Georgia, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) is stepping outside of the box to educate on the importance of healthy babies through a partnership with text4baby - a new, free mobile information service providing timely health information via text messages to pregnant women and new moms, from pregnancy through a baby's first year.

 

Financial Incentives Available for Migration to Electronic Health Records

Under the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act, healthcare providers have the opportunity to receive financial incentives for implementing the use of electronic health records (EHR). Healthcare professionals, eligible hospitals, and critical access hospitals that serve Medicare and Medicaid participants and display meaningful use of EHR are eligible for the financial incentives. The funding for the incentives is being provided through the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC). The incentive programs promotes the meaningful use of certified EHR to improve patient care, as well as reward and support providers as they transition into new technology within the nation's healthcare system.

 

Long Term Care facility Emergency Plans a Top Priority in North Georgia

The team of the North Georgia Health District Emergency Preparedness Department has taken great strides in assisting north Georgians to prepare for widespread emergencies that could range from natural disasters to potential terroristic threats.  In doing so, they are committed to making emergency preparedness in the district's health care community a top priority, with their latest focus being an even closer collaboration with long term care facilities.

Long term care facilities house some of the community's most vulnerable residents.  Therefore, the Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) Section of Emergency Preparedness and Response, in coordination with the Georgia Health Care Association, has developed the Georgia Long Term Care Emergency Operations Plan Guide, which is based on emergency preparedness features that are most important to these facilities.