Recognizing an incident with the shadow of a long history of hate

When staff and leadership at Public Health—Seattle & King County learned about the horrific shipment of body bags to our partners at Seattle Indian Health Board (SIHB), we were shocked and dismayed. The news generated a private apology and inquiry from Public Health to the CEO of SIHB. And it generated a rapid search of […]

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Taking a “place and race” approach to advancing community health in south Seattle & south King County

As King County’s population and housing costs have risen steeply, many people of color and lower income families in King County have migrated to south Seattle and south King County, with the most vulnerable populations at risk of being priced out of the county all together. This displacement can have negative health impacts: it disrupts […]

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Why Public Health sees a community threat in proposal about immigration

Public Health Director Patty Hayes with other community leaders at a news conference held at International Community Health Services in Seattle on Sept. 25, 2018

The new proposal to amend the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s “public charge” test is a threat to the public’s health. “This is inhumane, and it would undermine efforts to improve the overall health of King County—and impact generations to come,” said Patty Hayes, director of Public Health—Seattle & King County, in a news release […]

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Creating a Diverse Workforce Pipeline to Public Health

How do you inspire youth to make a difference in their community through public service? Ngozi Oleru, Director of the Environmental Health Services Division (EHS), and Greg Wilson, an EHS Project Manager, addressed this question by exposing diverse students within target communities to new possible career paths and helping to empower new leaders in public […]

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