Opening Doors to Better Health
Posted by Tony Gilmore
At a health fair in Korolev City near Moscow in December, several youths watched intently as a doctor specialized in treating addictions used an exhibit of healthy and diseased lungs to demonstrate the damage caused by smoking. Other children tried on blurred eyeglasses and took part in games that tested their reflexes to simulate the effects of alcohol abuse.
The health fair was among more than 100 in Russia made possible since 2006 by a US$300,000 Health, Hunger and Humanity (3-H) Grant project that has established five new health fair centers and expanded existing ones.
Sponsored by the Rotary clubs of Vladivostok, Russia, and Homer-Kachemak Bay, Alaska, USA, the centers train health fair organizers, form volunteer teams of health professionals, and publicize the fairs in the media.
The fairs offer a range of health screenings, diagnostic tests, treatment, and preventive services, including educational exhibits and games like those at the Korolev City fair. All told, the fairs have received logistical support from more than 20 Rotary clubs and served an estimated 20,000 people.
"Explicit medical exhibits and powerful visual aids have achieved tremendous impact on local youth and teenagers," said project co-coordinator Evgenia Klokova, a member of the Rotary Club of Vladivostok Central, Primor'ye Kray. "Some young people have voluntarily left unfinished packs of cigarettes, deciding on the spot to quit smoking after seeing a smoker's lung."
Sponsored by the Rotary clubs of Vladivostok, Russia, and Homer-Kachemak Bay, Alaska, USA, the centers train health fair organizers, form volunteer teams of health professionals, and publicize the fairs in the media.
The fairs offer a range of health screenings, diagnostic tests, treatment, and preventive services, including educational exhibits and games like those at the Korolev City fair. All told, the fairs have received logistical support from more than 20 Rotary clubs and served an estimated 20,000 people.
"Explicit medical exhibits and powerful visual aids have achieved tremendous impact on local youth and teenagers," said project co-coordinator Evgenia Klokova, a member of the Rotary Club of Vladivostok Central, Primor'ye Kray. "Some young people have voluntarily left unfinished packs of cigarettes, deciding on the spot to quit smoking after seeing a smoker's lung."