PHOTO: The National Pediatrics Center last week hosted the first in a series of summer family health fairs. Courtesy of Advanced Community Providers
By Michael V. Cusenza
The National Pediatric Center in Corona last week hosted the first in a series of summer family health fairs.
Hundreds gathered on Thursday at Corona Plaza on Roosevelt Avenue for the free event which, according to organizers, aims to address chronic medical issues affecting low-income and immigrant communities throughout the borough.
“The series of health fairs we are launching today is an important step toward improving health literacy and promoting healthy behaviors for the communities we serve,” said Moisés Pérez-Martínez, director of Workforce, Community & Government Relations for Advocate Community Providers – one of 25 Performing Provider Systems in the state’s Delivery Reform Incentive Payment program to transform New York’s Medicaid system.
The goals of the Delivery Reform Incentive Payment program, according to ACP, include reducing “avoidable hospitalizations,” and ensuring that patients and their families with Medicaid switch to a community-based care system that emphasizes preventative care over reliance on the emergency room.
The fair featured wellness-focused activities and seminars, including a pop-up shop run by Get Focused, an organizations that empowers students to “purchase” books by completing fitness challenges guided by certified trainers. Additional features included informational pamphlets on Zika virus, which is prevalent in Latino communities; seminars on asthma management and healthy eating; as well as fun activities for parents and children. National Pediatric Center also staffed free body mass index and blood pressure stations throughout the four-hour event.
Fair organizers indicated that Thursday’s event and the continued series will encourage families to develop healthy behaviors necessary for improving community well-being.
michael@theforumnewsgroup.com
