Delana Maxwell (center), nutritional education speaker at Saturday’s Wellness Village, joins African American Health Coalition staff members Sandra Meucci (left) and Edith Forthan.
Photo by Mark Washington/The Portland Observer
Wellness Village draws 200 residents
Saturday marked the African American Health Coalition’s 15th annual Wellness Village, an event that has been providing vital health screenings and health and wellness information to the Portland community.
More than 200 attended the all-day event, and more than 100 utilized the complimentary vision, blood pressure, hearing, dental, foot exams, and blood glucose (for diabetes) testing. Also offered were immunization and flu shots, and nutritional education seminars. Forty-seven health-related vendors provided information on insurance, health care, local hospitals, and medical clinic services.
Sandra Meucci, internal evaluator at the African American Health Coalition, said the Wellness Village has changed over the years to better suit changing health needs, “addressing what we know to be the major health care concerns affecting the community.”
The Wellness Village followed Friday’s 6th annual Health Disparities conference, which focused on diabetes.
Sally Norby, the executive director of the American Diabetes Association, shared information about causes and preventative measures to use against the disease. Diabetes has negatively affected African Americans more than any other people – diabetes-related mortality in African Americans is twice that of white non-Hispanics, and 2.7 times greater than Asians.
