Healthy Women = Healthy Moms = Healthy Babies
On April 5, 2008 the St. Francis Women’s Health unit and the St Francis Medical Library sponsored a health fair at the Latin American Community Center in Wilmington, Delaware. The theme of the health fair was “Healthy Women=Healthy Moms=Healthy Babies”. The target audience was the local Hispanic community. We chose this area and population because Delaware has been cited as the sixth leading state in the nation for infant mortality.
The exhibits included blood pressure screening, cholesterol screening, glucose screening and HIV testing. Information was available on lead testing in the home, cancer screening, diabetes and a heart healthy lifestyle. Great educational materials were provided by the National Library of Medicine. Most of the materials were available in Spanish.
Our physicians and nurses that volunteered to work the fair were all Spanish speaking. The women and men attending the fair were given one on one attention. Several very ill women were identified and referrals were made. Information was given to all attendees concerning access to health care and insurance.
The health fair was a great success with over 80 attendees. Everyone left with bags of health information and some fun giveaways.
Rosemary Figorito. St. Francis Medical Library. Wilmington, DE
