Gilroy
– Want to speak with a doctor about something – anything – face
to face? Or receive free HIV testing?
Visitors to Gilroy Community Health Day 2005 can do these
healthy things and more at Glen View Elementary School today from
11am to 3pm.
By Lori Stuenkel
Gilroy – Want to speak with a doctor about something – anything – face to face? Or receive free HIV testing?
Visitors to Gilroy Community Health Day 2005 can do these healthy things and more at Glen View Elementary School today from 11am to 3pm.
It’s the second year for the event, which started with a grant to the Gilroy Eigleberry Neighborhood Association and blossomed into a many-sided event focusing on healthy living.
Representatives and volunteers with the more than 70 local community agencies participating in Health Day were gearing up Friday and planned to be at the school as early as 7am today to prepare for the expected crowds.
“We’re excited, it’s going to be big – bigger than we expected,” said Eileen Obata, Gilroy Unified School District nurse who is helping with coordination on behalf of the health services department. “We’re expecting well over 1,000 people.”
The non-profit groups will offer health-related services from childhood immunizations, nutrition education, and information about health insurance, to screenings for diabetes, blood pressure, and dental problems.
“It’s to increase awareness, and also let the community know what health care resources are out there,” said Vivian Smith, spokeswoman for Saint Louise Regional Hospital. “The health screenings are free for everybody, whether you have insurance or not, so it’s something that would be a benefit for anyone who comes.”
Dolores Huerta, co-founder of the United Farm Workers of America, will offer a keynote speech at noon. Assemblyman Simón Salinas, D-Salinas, will host a table for children’s fingerprinting and identification cards.
Kaiser Permanente will provide a “Talk to the doc” event, where doctors will set up inside Glen View classrooms to meet with people of all ages.
Other health day features include vision and hearing testing, health insurance sign-ups and resources from mental health agencies. One table will offer bone marrow screening that, with the contribution of a blood sample, may find matches for patients in need of a transplant. Saint Louise will help with caregiver authorizations for parents whose children may be brought by another adult to the hospital in an emergency. Someone also will be available to help with “advance directives,” or living wills.
Gilroy police and firefighters will be participating in the event. Firefighters will teach the public how to use emergency medical services, as “National EMS Week” draws to a close, and to prevent emergencies.
Children can visit a kids’ area with entertainment and activities, snacks will be available, and sponsors have donated raffle prizes.
“This has been a huge collaborative effort,” Obata said. “We just ended up joining forces with everyone and there’s just been really a lot of excitement about it, and there’s been a lot of hard work put into it.”
Gilroy Eigleberry Neighborhood Association received a $4,500 grant for the event, but sponsors and participants contributed much more than that, said Art Barron, GENA president.
“We probably got over $10,000 in grants and donations to help us cover the cost, because it was important for us to have it all free,” Barron said.
The first Community Health Day was held last year in the Gilroy Kaiser parking lot.
“It was a success,” said Smith of Saint Louise. “This one’s going to be downtown, in a more central location.”
It’s also more accessible to low-income residents living near the Glen View school, Barron noted.
“A lot of them are either uninsured or underinsured, and a lot of them do not have access to the resources that are available,” Barron said.
Planning for today’s event began in January, and planners said they’ve had to turn away some agencies because so many are participating. Numerous volunteers will help the event run smoothly.
What:
Community Health Day
When:
Today, 11am to 3pm
Where:
Glen View Elementary, 600 W. Eighth St.
Why attend:
Free screenings and advice, educational information and demonstrations:
– Blood sugar/diabetes screening
– HIV testing
– Hearing and vision
– Blood pressure testing
– Health insurance
– Childhood immunizations
– Dental exams
– Food, entertainment, kids’ activities
