By Voice & Viewpoint Staff Writer
As November is Diabetes Awareness Month, Dr. Suzanne Afflalo and Wendy Shurelds Co-organizers and Founders of the Community Health and Resource Fair created this monthly fair to address health disparities and lack of access to healthcare by offering a One Stop Health Hub at the Jackie Robinson YMCA every month. Last Wednesday, November 6th, community members, practitioners, physicians, and non-profit organizers came out to bring healthcare resources to the community.
Free resources such as blood pressure checks; diabetes, cholesterol, and HIV & HEP-C screenings; breast exams and mammogram sign ups; Medi-Cal and CalFresh information; Covered California workshops; flu & COVID-19 vaccines; San Diego Humane Society and food distributions; raffle prizes and more.
“There are many health challenges in the community, but the most common ones are access to healthcare, health disparities, lack of healthy food (food desert), and lack of trust in the traditional healthcare system,” said Dr. Afflalo.
Free shuttle rides are also made available to and from the Educational Cultural Complex and Asia Wok in Southeastern San Diego in an effort to get people the care they need to fight the recurring limitations in healthcare access in lower-income minority communities.
“We created this monthly health fair, to identify people with either newly diagnosed or poorly controlled medical conditions and to educate and counsel them on the importance of lifestyle changes [and] medication to control their medical conditions or the need for a mammogram,” she continued.
Some organizations in attendance were Joint Initiatives for Racial Equity in Health (JIREH) Providers, Peer Support Network, Black Women Inflammation and Tau Study (BITWS), Financial Literacy, Kaiser Permanente, Many Shades of Pink, Live Well San Diego, UC San Diego Health, San Diego Community Power, Medi-Cal and CalFresh, San Ysidro Health, Paradigm Clinical Research, Family Justice Center, Family Health Center, Grid Alternatives, Community Education and Outreach, Southern Caregiver Resource Center, and many more.
Dr. Afflalo encourages the community to “invest an hour of their time once a month to attend to check on their health and speak to a health provider. Walk around, visit the vendors, enjoy the music, chat with other community members, earn a few giveaways, and go home with lots of fresh produce.”
These resources are available to everyone FREE of charge on the first Wednesday of every month at the Jackie Robinson YMCA.
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