T his Saturday is the second annual Community Health Day, a very
special event that showcases everything that is good about the
South County communities of Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy.
T his Saturday is the second annual Community Health Day, a very special event that showcases everything that is good about the South County communities of Morgan Hill, San Martin and Gilroy.
The day was designed last year by the Health and Safety Alliance subcommittee of the South County Collaborative in response to the common vision held by public health care and non-profit public benefit organizations and the local branch of Kaiser Permanente to improve the level of health and wellness for everyone in our community by increasing awareness of and access to our local health care resources. This year’s Community Health Day builds on last year’s success and is infused with new grassroots energy and resources through a partnership with the award-winning Gilroy Eigleberry Neighborhood Association (GENA).
The intent is to create a fun, family-friendly event to reach those in the South County who don’t have health insurance, are underinsured, or don’t have medical care. While Santa Clara County is a model for its ability to insure its children, we, like the rest of the state, have a huge number of uninsured adults.
Parents get sick, too, and ill adults have a tremendous impact on our community. A study on uninsured adults by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), released this month, stated that adults who lack health care coverage are more likely to report poor or fair health, and are more likely to not see a doctor when needed due to cost than adults with coverage.
The event also targets those who have health insurance, but don’t know how to access preventive and primary health services, or, like me, may know how, but simply don’t. This could be due to the way one’s insurance is set up, or a lack of familiarity with what is available. Whatever the reason for not accessing needed health care, the cost is not just to the individual and his family, but also to the community in lost productivity and increase in extra costs of emergency acute care.
The event will highlight two growing problems in our community: obesity and diabetes. The problems with obesity have made plenty of headlines lately: high blood pressure, depression, respiratory problems and an increased likelihood of developing diabetes. A Harvard University study estimated that as many as 50 percent of people in the U.S. with diabetes are undiagnosed and nearly one-third of women with diabetes do not recognize or do not experience the warning signs. Untreated diabetes can lead to blindness, kidney failure, heart disease, and stroke, and is the third leading cause of death in the United States.
In addition to food, entertainment, raffles for prizes and kids activities, more than 60 local organizations will provide a wide variety of services and information that contribute to the overall health of the community. These include blood sugar and diabetes screening, children’s immunizations, dental exams and family dental care, cholesterol and blood pressure screening, hearing and vision exams, Body Mass Index measurement, mental health information and information on low-cost family health insurance, stroke awareness and safe driving.
The organizers have arranged a unique service: “Talk with a Doc” where you can sit down and have a consultation with a doctor about a problem or question. And, United Farm Worker and community organizing legend Dolores Huerta will come and speak to the community at noon.
The kinds of screenings and interventions offered at the Community Health Day are just the kind needed to help catch the “small nagging pain in the back” and keep it from becoming a large acute problem requiring an emergency room visit and a long recovery, which can sometimes devastate even middle income families.
Watching this event come together over the last few months, I have been filled with hope and inspiration, not only because it improves the overall health of our community by increasing access to health services for all people in our community, but because of the obvious commitment of all facets of the community – taxpayer supported public services, non-profit public benefit organizations, private health care provider Kaiser Permanente, Gilroy School District, St. Louise Regional Hospital, the City of Gilroy and local grassroots leaders and workers from GENA and local business sponsors – to a healthy and whole community. The unique and genuine cooperation of our local organizations is one of the things I love about living here.
11am to 3pm Saturday, May 21, at Glen View Elementary School in Gilroy. Details: South County Collaborative coordinator Kim Cucuzza at 686-2285.
Columnist Dina Campeau is a wife, mother of two teens and a resident of Morgan Hill. Her work for the last seven years has focused on affordable housing and homeless issues in Santa Clara County. Reach her at dc******@*****er.net 9 04
