By Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector, June 21, 2022 This year, the Kansas Department of Health and Environment announced a new certification for these health workers, the first in the state to recognize the role they play in linking communities to health and social services. Development of the certification involved more than 40 members of the Kansas …
By Debra Venzke, University of Iowa College of Public Health “The COVID-19 Pandemic has been detrimental to many people’s mental health, with the stresses on workers in health care, education, and other essential services frequently highlighted. Less often, however, has attention been focused on the mental health needs of the public health workforce that has …
By the Commission on Racial Equity and Justice Governor Laura Kelly signed Executive Order No. 20-48 in June of 2020, establishing the Governor’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice. The focus of this Commission is to study issues of racial equity and justice in Kansas. Two reports have been released: Policing and Law Enforcement in …
Governor’s Commission on Racial Equity and Justice Report Read More »
By Kansas Reflector, Tim Carpenter “The trove of information in the report produced by the Kansas Department of Health and Environment offered insight into medical and behavioral challenges based on 10,000 telephone interviews conducted throughout 2019. The survey performed since the 1990s in Kansas with support from nonprofit health foundations and the U.S. Centers for …
KDHE Report Affirms Education, Income, Race and Gender Influence Health Risks Read More »
By: Noah Taborda, Kansas Reflector “… while the number of infant deaths reported is the lowest on record for the state, disparities in infant mortality rates among vulnerable populations persist in 2019.” This article features information from the Kansas Infant Mortality & Stillbirth Report (2019) by KDHE Bureau of Epidemiology and Public Health Informatics. READ …
Racial Disparities in Infant Mortalities Persist Despite Record Low Rates in Kansas Read More »
By: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention “When COVID-19 hit Southwest Kansas in the spring of 2020, there was little information available about the disease in languages other than English. Many essential workers from refugee communities turned to their neighbors, Physician Assistant Erin Keeley and Doctor Rachael Svaty, with their questions. The providers had a …
Grassroots Efforts in Southwest Kansas Educate Refugee Communities about COVID-19 Read More »
Originally written by Lisa Horn, Public Health Nurse Specialist, KDHE Local Public Health for the August Edition of Public Health Connections. Correctional facility conditions have the potential for a “perfect storm” for COVID-19 – close living arrangements, staff and offenders moving in and out of the facility and limited resources. The COVID-19 outbreak at the …
Lessons Learned from Lansing Assist With Corrections Response Statewide Read More »
The purpose of Public Health Emergency Preparedness (PHEP) is to ready our state and counties for a host of public health emergencies. The good news is a lot of preliminary work the counties have been doing via the PHEP program has paid dividends when it comes to the COVID-19 response.
KDHE was notified by the Kansas Department of Administration in June 2020 that there are significant cuts to programs/initiatives funded with state general funds due to the state budget crisis.
The coronavirus pandemic shut down non-essential businesses in Kansas for more than a month. Photo courtesy of Brian Grimmett, Kansas News Service Originally written by Celia Llopis-Jepsen for the Kansas News Service TOPEKA, Kansas — County health departments in Kansas lacked the resources and manpower to swiftly ramp up “boots-on-the-ground” work when the coronavirus pandemic hit, new …