On Saturday, October 19, Methodist Hospitals held its annual Free Fall Community Health Fair at St. Timothy Community Church in Gary. They provided a range of free health screenings including heart attack and stroke risk assessments, blood glucose and cholesterol tests, and prostate-specific antigen tests for men.
Methodist Hospitals Stroke Coordinator Patrick O’Brien, Registered Nurse and Inpatient Diabetic Educator Valerie Alger, and Assistant Vice President of Cardiology and Imaging Kevin Roesch had insights highlighting the importance of community health education and preventive care.
"The event today is all about promoting healthy lifestyles and screening our community for preventable diseases that we can catch early or help them avoid," said Roesch. "Through risk assessments, we identify factors that people can work to eliminate. One thing we often see is patients coming in with heart attacks who haven’t had proper management of their risk factors — some haven't seen a doctor in years, and their first visit to us is during a heart attack. Methodist Hospitals is a leader in heart care, and we aim to change that trend."
Attendees were provided with handouts that emphasize the importance of following doctors' dietary recommendations. This includes cutting back on fast food and fried foods as much as possible and incorporating regular exercise.
"I'm hoping for better recognition of stroke signs and symptoms, earlier detection, and quicker action in seeking treatment when those symptoms occur," said O’Brien. "Even if it means going to urgent care, they can refer you to a hospital since urgent care centers aren’t equipped to treat strokes, but they will help get you the treatment you need.
Methodist employees staffed tables, providing services with great care and gratitude. They also offered a free pancake breakfast for those who attended the health fair.
"We have excellent facilities to help patients who might be experiencing a stroke," said Roesch. "Of course, our goal is to prevent these situations from happening, but when a patient does present chest pain – which could be a sign of a heart attack – or symptoms like weakness on one side or slurred speech – indicating a stroke – we’re ready to step in. In both cardiac and stroke cases, we act immediately because the time from when a patient comes through our doors to when they receive treatment is critical."
Methodist provides diabetes education to the community to encourage healthy habits and behaviors that can prevent the progression of prediabetes to type 2 diabetes. This initiative also supports healthy living for those who are already diabetic, whether type 1 or type 2.
"We offer classes, individual sessions, and nutrition workshops," said Alger. “Next month, November, is Diabetes Awareness Month. Our goal is to help people avoid diabetes altogether. If you can manage your pre-diabetes, we can help prevent it from progressing to type 2 diabetes."
Through events like these, Methodist has been able to see positive results in the community. These initiatives have successfully raised awareness and encouraged healthier lifestyle choices among attendees.
"At Methodist, we've seen almost a doubling of stroke patients we've treated over the last two years," said O’Brien. "We want to spread the word and give patients the tools they need to help prevent a stroke or, if they recognize one in a loved one or friend, get them to the right treatment as quickly as possible."
For more information, please visit methodisthospitals.org.
