Hunting a haunting virus

October 30, 2015.Reading time 7 minutes.

As scary stories go, this one ranks high on Dr. Jeff Duchin’s list. The year was 1993, and he was serving as an Epidemic Intelligence Service (EIS) officer for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dubbed CDC’s Disease Detectives, EIS officers are often first on the scene when a public health emergency occurs, helping public health […]

Rats enjoy sailing, and other unexpected rat facts

October 30, 2015.Reading time 7 minutes.

From the editor: At Public Health, we recognize the risks associated with rats. But not all rats are creepy, and they’re certainly not all filthy. In fact, one of our Public Health Nurses, Lauri Serafin, and her family are owners of sweet, domestic rats. She offered to share her insights – and some pretty cute […]

Rats: One more reason you should shut the toilet lid

October 28, 2015.Reading time 4 minutes.

We are not here to scare you. But those urban legends you’ve heard about rats in toilets? They’re (at least partially) true. Rats in toilets – what are the odds? It is very unlikely that you will find a rat in your toilet. The City of Seattle is estimated to have about 2.5 million toilets, […]

How I became a fan of nit-picking: One mom’s account of a recent head lice diagnosis

October 22, 2015.Reading time 5 minutes.

Disclaimer: Just by reading this blog post, you may find yourself itching Growing up, a diagnosis of head lice could mean the ultimate end to one’s social life. At the very least, it would mean taunts from siblings and certainly looks of suspicion from classmates who would think you never washed your hair. Being one […]

Afraid of bedbugs? Don’t be. Just get rid of them.

October 14, 2015.Reading time 3 minutes.

Our public health website gets thousands of visits every month. Common searches include restaurant workers seeking food safety cards, parents looking up immunization schedules, and families who want to obtain birth or death certificates from our Vital Statistics office. But the most popular search by far, generating at least 20,000 page views a month, is […]

Bats: Not so bad, but please don’t touch

October 2, 2015.Reading time 5 minutes.

Bats have an unfortunate reputation. A small, unscientific survey of our staff said they associate bats with “vampires,” “Mitzvah,” “Michael Keaton,” and “Nelson Cruz.” Clearly, we needed to learn more. So we sat down with our in-house expert, Public Health Veterinarian Beth Lipton, who reminded us that bats aren’t all bad, but you really shouldn’t touch […]