Official insights from Public Health – Seattle & King County staff
The healthcare sector is a significant contributor to climate change, producing around 10% of total carbon emissions. Climate change strains healthcare systems, increasing visits and deaths. It’s crucial for healthcare to reduce emissions, waste, and improve energy efficiency while adapting to climate change. A new playbook supports hospitals and clinics in this effort, offering practical guidance and support.
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Public Health was informed by Washington State Department of Health last week that a group of international travelers visiting Seattle were exposed to an individual with measles prior to arriving in Seattle. Currently, there are no cases of measles among the group (or within King County), but we are monitoring the situation closely.
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Our toxicologist, Dr. Shirlee Tan, explains about why PFAS, or “forever chemicals,” are a concern and what consumers should know about PFAS in food packaging.
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This comic explains how measles is able to spread so easily to people who haven’t previously had measles or been vaccinated against measles.
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There’s new recommendations for when we go back to our activities after being sick with any common respiratory viruses like flu, COVID and RSV. We sat down with our disease expert Dr. Eric Chow to learn more about the changes and how we can continue to protect ourselves with masks, good ventilation and staying home when sick.
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Thanks to a new 24/7 ‘bup’ prescribing hotline, it’s easier than ever for people in King County to get started on medication to treat opioid use disorder. In partnership with the UW Department of Emergency Medicine, King County recently launched a telemedicine program that will provide on-demand access to a buprenorphine prescription, also known as “bup”.
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