More than 20 student organizations at NEOMED banded together to present a health fair for community members March 17 in the NEW Center. Nikhil Nadler, a second-year College of Medicine student, contributed this report.
With multiple students working at each booth, we were well equipped to help the people who attended the Body and Beyond Health Fair—more than 60 in all.
Most of the people who attended were over the age of 50, many of them from the immediate Ravenna and Rootstown area. It felt like we made a significant difference, because so many of the people had come for screenings of preventable diseases and to obtain information about living a healthy lifestyle. We offered services including screenings for cholesterol, blood pressure, blood glucose, BMI, glaucoma, HIV and hepatitis C. We also offered classes and demonstrations by Sequoia Wellness, including tai chi, yoga and Zumba.
From working at this event, it was clear to me that there are health disparities right in our own community that need to be addressed, and it felt good to help.