Job Bank UCMC News Calendar Hospital Staff Administration Volunteers History Contact Us Qualifications and Awards Financial Arrangements Patient Rights and Responsibilities Advance Directives Visiting Hours Admissions and Discharge Gift Shop and Cafeteria 1530 N. Limestone Street Gaffney, SC 29340 864.487.4271 mail@upstatecarolina.org		Score 1 For Good Health 700 Educators Team Up for Health Fair Prepared by: Steve Wong Upstate Carolina Medical Center Marketing Phone 864-487-1515 Ricky Bledsoe, Director of Health Information Services, Adrian Corbet, Director of Material Management, and Austin Brown, Administrative Intern, were among the many hospital employees to wear black and white referee shirts in at the Cherokee County School District annual health fair. Women's Center nurses Myra Westbrooks and Olivia Martin had a winning line-up to let women know their options and services at Upstate Carolina Medical Center. Family practice physician Richard Cutchin, M.D., was one of several doctors at the school district health fair. He interpreted blood test results. Debbie Guimont, Medical Staff Coordinator, and Dottie Spencer, Patient Registration Supervisor, matched health fair participants with the their blood results. Wearing black and white referee shirts and passing out noisy clackers, the medical professionals of Upstate Carolina Medical Center scored one for better health Tuesday, Jan. 16, as they hosted an annual health fair for more than 700 employees of the Cherokee County School District. "That was a lot of fun," Director of Industrial Health Alice Walker said as she cleaned up after the game. "It was a lot of work, but I really think the school district employees enjoyed the event and learned some important information," she said, as the event's leader. "This year, our theme was sports, and I believe it really appealed to the school district. Gaffney is such a sports-oriented town." For at least the past 10 years, the local hospital has hosted an annual health fair for the school district, which is one of the county's largest employers. This event is also the hospital's largest health fair, hosting about 25 throughout the county each year. During the fair, many of the hospital's departments, medical staff members, and other health agencies came together to provide a wealth of information in the form of display booths and on-the-spot services. "The challenge is to make it interesting," Walker said. "That usually means coming up with a different theme each year." The employees were greeted starting at 7:30 a.m. with gourmet coffee and Danish as they entered Gaffney High School's central lobby. Throughout the lobby and the entire fair, sports-related decorations supported such services as blood pressure checks, consultations on blood analysis, body fat calculations, and providing information on everything from birth control to major surgery. Each participant was given a small shopping bag as they entered the fair, and at most displays, information and promotional items were provided. "Some of the free things were just fun," Walker said. "Things like the clackers and whistles" things they can use at football games. But most of the items had a health-rated purpose, such as bottles of hand sanitizer, band-aids, magnets with information on managing blood pressure. People tend to accept health information better if we serve it with a healthy dose of fun." "Once again the school district health fair was a huge success," hospital Marketing Director Steve Wong commented. "Just after the fair, I was at lunch and got three handshakes and a hug from people who attended the fair. They were very appreciative. A big part of what Upstate Carolina Medical Center does is promote positive health, and this health fair was a great example of changing lives in Cherokee County." 2006 News Archive