This article is an excerpt from the 2017 April Alaska Safety Working Group newsletter. Exercise balls (or FitBalls, Swiss Balls, Physio Balls, etc.) have been appearing in the workplace as a replacement for an office chair. There is much debate over the benefits or detriments of using these balls, originally intended for gym or physical…
Tools for Addressing Bed Bugs in Rural Alaska
Introduction Environmental health programs from Alaska’s regional tribal health corporations have seen rural Alaskans struggle to deal with bed bugs over the last 5+ years. Access to pest control professionals, treatment equipment, prevention supplies and bed bug expertise, coupled with a high prevalence of shared community spaces make rural Alaskan communities particularly vulnerable to bed…
2017 National Tribal Public Health Summit
The National Tribal Public Health Summit will be held June 6-8 in Anchorage this year. https://www.nihb.org/communications/phs_2017.php Sandra Whitehead and Elizabeth Landeen of NEHA will be in attendance. One of their goals for attending is to learn more about the technical assistance needs of tribes and how NEHA can support that. If you’re planning to attend…
Accela/NEHA 2017 AEC Scholarships
Now Accepting Applications This year, Accela Environmental Health and the National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) have partnered to award 9 scholarships to professionals to attend the NEHA 2017 Annual Educational Conference (AEC). The event takes place July 10–13, 2017 in Grand Rapids, MI. Details: Applications will be accepted from March 1–March 31 Each of the selected…
Food Safety/Disaster Training Opportunity in April
Food Safety Issues in the Event of Disasters: Practical Application This course incorporates interactive and performance-based activities to address food safety issues commonly faced in the event of a disaster. Food safety response and recovery issues that will be covered include situational assessments, inspectional concerns, salvage and other mitigation strategies related to food retail and…
2016 AEHA Annual Education Conference Highlights
“Let us be the bridge builders.” That was an important message from my opening remarks at the 2016 AEHA annual education conference. Our conference theme was to bridge healthcare and environmental health and our presenters did an excellent job showing us the path forward. From our daily keynote addresses we learned about theories of decision…
NEHA Internship Deadline Approaching
The National Environmental Health Association (NEHA) is extending the deadline to submit applications for its National Environmental Public Health Internship Program (NEPHIP), funded by CDC’s Environmental Health Services Branch. Local, state, and tribal environmental health departments can apply to host one of 20 environmental health internships during summer 2017. Selected college students from environmental health…
Investing in an Effective Environmental Health System
See NEHA’s website for details about this fact sheet.
AEHA’s Youngest Member meets the Surgeon General!
During his trip to the YK Delta, the Surgeon General met with Atlas Albertson and posed in a photo homage to the Surgeon General’s Sesame Street vaccination Public Service Announcement.
Upcoming Events
Conference for Water Innovations for Healthy Arctic Homes (WIHAH) The WIHAH Conference will be held at the Hilton Hotel in Anchorage, AK on September 18-21, 2016. Conference themes include: the impact of household water and sanitation on Arctic human health; climate change impacts on sanitation infrastructure; and regulations and policies affecting access to providing adequate…
Alaska Contingent at 2016 NEHA Conference
The 2016 NEHA Annual Educational Conference (AEC) and HUD Healthy Homes Conference was held June 13-16 in San Antonio, Texas. The event was hosted at several hotels along San Antonio’s famous River Walk. This was a welcome treat for visiting attendees. Tracks at this year’s AEC included: air quality; climate change; children’s environmental health; emerging…
Surgeon General visits Bethel and Napaskiak
On August 3rd, YKHC was honored to host Dr. Vivek Murthy, the United States Surgeon General. After a briefing about healthcare delivery in the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta, local opioid use and treatment options, and other regional health issues, YKHC staff brought Dr. Murthy to Napaskiak. While in Napaskiak, Dr. Murthy toured the village clinic to meet…
