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updated July 8, 2009

Welcome to the Rhode Island Department of Health Website

Our Mission
is to prevent disease and to protect and promote the health and safety of the people of Rhode Island.

H1N1 (Swine) Flu Information

I Want To...	Online Services
Get a copy of a birth, death or marriage certificate Check nursing home quality scores Request Health Department infomation File a complaint against a health professional File a no-smoking complaint Quit Smoking Find out about food recalls	View Food Safety Inspection Reports Renew your Health Professional License Verify the license of a health professional Order educational materials online Download mailing lists and labels

Features

Hospital Conversions / Mergers Program

Adult Influenza Immunization Program
Enroll Here

Fire Safe Cigarette regulation status
The Fire Safe Cigarettes regulations implementation has been indefinitely postponed. Do not submit certifications at this time. Change in status will be posted on this site. Please check periodically. For more information contact: Jan Shedd, Team Lead for Health Promotion and Wellness (222-5927).

Food Safety Inspections
Health Department food safety inspection reports completed since January 2007 are available online for all retail establishments including restaurants, markets and health care facilities. These reports consist of all inspection types including routine and reinspections, illness investigations and preoperational inspections. Some inspections may not contain violations.

Health and Medical Headlines

Reuters Health
Yahoo Health
CDC
NIH
WHO

Reuters Health

U.S. discourages quick school closure for swine flu

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - New U.S. guidelines for the pandemic of H1N1 swine flu released on Friday discourage the early closure of schools, unless the virus becomes worse.

Flu tests miss many cases, U.S. CDC confirms

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Current quick tests for flu miss many cases of the new pandemic H1N1 strain, researchers at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported on Thursday.

Psychopaths have faulty brain connections, scientists find

LONDON (Reuters) - Psychopaths who kill and rape have faulty connections between the part of the brain dealing with emotions and that which handles impulses and decision-making, scientists have found.

Yahoo Health

Recession means fewer babies; US births fell 2 pct (AP)

AP - There aren't just fewer jobs in a recession. There are fewer babies, too. U.S. births fell in 2008, the first full year of the recession, marking the first annual decline in births since the start of the decade and ending an American baby boomlet.

Don't rush to close schools for swine flu — Gov't (AP)

AP - Don't panic, schools. The government is urging school officials to stay calm when swine flu strikes this fall, closing buildings only in drastic cases and allowing sick students to return as soon as 24 hours after their fever is gone.

Sanofi Pasteur starts testing swine flu vaccine (AP)

AP - French drugmaker Sanofi Pasteur began human trials of its swine flu vaccine this week in about 2,000 people in the United States, the company said Friday — becoming the third company conducting clinical trials on swine flu vaccines.

CDC

Study Shows Benefits of Biculturalism

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) supported study shows that Latino adolescents in the United States who maintain ties to their culture of origin are more likely to develop healthy behaviors than their peers who do not.

The U.S. Departments of Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, and Education to Announce Updated School Guidance for Influenza Season

Secretaries Sebelius, Duncan, and Napolitano will host a press conference to release updated guidance for schools during the upcoming influenza season.

Scientists successfully isolate Marburg virus from African fruit bats

A team of scientists reported today the successful isolation of genetically diverse Marburg viruses from a common species of African fruit bat (Egyptian fruit bat, Rousettus aegyptiacus).

NIH

Secretary Sebelius Announces Senate Confirmation of Dr. Francis Collins as Director of the National Institutes of Health

HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced today that the United States Senate unanimously confirmed Dr. Francis Collins as the next Director of the National Institutes of Health.

A Brief Behavioral Intervention Can Reduce Depression in Stroke Survivors

A nurse-led behavioral intervention can reduce the incidence of depression in stroke survivors, according to the results of a study published in the recent issue of the journal Stroke. The intervention, called Living Well with Stroke (LWWS), provided individualized counseling sessions aimed at increasing pleasant social interactions and physical activity as a way to elevate mood, and was designed to be used alone or in conjunction with antidepressant medications. This study was funded by the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR), a component of the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

From Nerve Roots to Plant Roots â€” Researchers are Gaining Unexpected Insights into Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia

Sprouting. Branching. Pruning. Neuroscientists have borrowed heavily from botanists to describe the way that neurons grow, but analogies between the growth of neurons and plants may be more than superficial. A new study from the National Institutes of Health and Harvard Medical School suggests that neurons and plant root cells may grow using a similar mechanism.

WHO

Breastfeeding: a vital emergency response. Are you ready?

31 July 2009 -- WHO is pleased to join the World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action in celebrating World Breastfeeding Week from 1 to 7 August 2009. This year's theme stresses the importance of breastfeeding as a life-saving intervention, especially during emergencies.

Elimination of river blindness feasible

21 July 2009 -- Elimination of river blindness is feasible with ivermectin treatment, according to new evidence published today. Over 37 million people, mainly in rural Africa, are infected with this disease, also known as onchocerciasis.

New network to combat noncommunicable diseases

8 July 2009 -- WHO today launched a network of organizations and experts from around the world to scale up action to combat noncommunicable diseases. The new Global Noncommunicable Disease Network (NCDnet) will strengthen global partnerships and help governments plan and implement measures to reduce the burden of these diseases.

In the News

07/17/2009 14:30 EDT

HEALTH Approves Roger Williams Hospital, St. Joseph's Health Services Affiliation

07/17/2009 11:30 EDT

HEALTH Issues Findings Of Inspection At Kent Hospital

07/15/2009 14:45 EDT

HEALTH Identifies Remains as Joseph "Joe Onions" Scanlon

07/07/2009 13:15 EDT

HEALTH Announces Second Death Due To H1N1 In Rhode Island

07/07/2009 10:15 EDT

Rhode Island Ranks Fourth Lowest In Nation In Overall Obesity Rates

07/03/2009 09:15 EDT