Medical professionals such as Registered Nurses, Medical Doctors, trained phlebotomists, Nurse Practitioners, Physicians Assistants, Emergency Medical Technicians, and students enrolled in a medical program with instructor supervision, can volunteer at any 9Health Fair site. Volunteer medical professionals are also needed to call participants with critical or alert health situations.

“We are pleased to launch our 28th year of service to people throughout Colorado and its bordering states,” said Jim Goddard, president and CEO of 9Health Fair. “and we are grateful to the thousands of individuals who will volunteer to make this program happen.”

According to Goddard, as healthcare costs continue to rise, so the does the value of 9Health Fair.

“Monitoring your health through tests can be difficult,” Goddard said, “but thanks to contributions from our sponsors, medical associates and other organizations, 9Health Fair keeps its evidence-based screenings free and low-cost. For example, our 31-component blood chemistry screening, which analyzes major organ functions including kidney, liver, thyroid, and cholesterol and triglyceride levels, is only $30. Our screenings do not replace an annual check up and the need to have a relationship with a healthcare provider. However we do offer an opportunity for people to take more personal responsibility for their own health.”

As an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, 9Health Fair promotes health awareness and encourages individuals to assume responsibility for their own health. Since 1980, 9Health Fair has impacted over 1.7 million lives. In 2006, one of those lives was Terri Thomas from Loveland, CO.

“My mom and I went to the 2006 9Health Fair at Aims Community College in Greeley,” Thomas said. “I hadn't been feeling well so my sister-in-law urged me to go. We went on a Sunday, and that Tuesday I got a call from a nurse who informed me that my thyroid level was less than .01 and that I needed to contact my doctor. I did so right away and had further tests run. I was diagnosed with hyperthyroid and through additional tests, learned that I was suffering from Graves’ disease. I am just so glad I made the decision that day to muster up the energy to go to 9Health Fair. I knew something was wrong but had no previous diagnosis, even though I had seen a physician several times describing my symptoms. Had I not gone to the 9Health Fair, I believe I still would have been seeking help.”

9Health Fair participants can access free screenings such as finger stick glucose, skin, vision, blood pressure, Pap smear, breast, bone density, mental health and more. Through a continued relationship with the Colorado Prevention Center, 9Health Fair is offering Cardio Risk Assessments at select 9Health Fair sites. The CRA’s can determine a person’s heart disease risk in the next 10 years. Other low-cost screenings include a $25 Prostate Specific Antigen (PSA) screening for men and $5 colon cancer screening take home kits.

In 2007, through a collaboration with the American Cancer Society, the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center, and the University of Colorado Hospital, 9Health Fair is offering expanded colon cancer education at all 9Health Fair sites.

“Colon cancer is one of the most preventable cancers,” Goddard said, “and this expanded information reinforces the importance of early detection through screenings and encourages participants to take appropriate follow-up action. The take home kit is a first step toward seeking a full exam and imaging procedure.”

9Health Fair will also unveil its new Health Portfolios in 2007. The Health Portfolios replace participant bags and are designed for participants to safely store and track their annual 9Health Fair results and other health-related information.

In addition, 9Health Fair is collaborating with Richard Flanigan, M.D., and Kate Flanigan Sawyer, M.D., M.P.H., on the launch of their upcoming book Longevity Made Simple. Through decades of research, this father-daughter team has outlined, in a user-friendly book, how to add 20 quality years to your life through health prevention efforts.

“For decades, 9Health Fair has provided Coloradans with information and tools to monitor their health,” Goddard said. “9Health Fair proudly supports Longevity Made Simple and Drs. Richard Flanigan and Kate Flanigan Sawyer for powerfully demonstrating that taking healthy action today can add quality and longevity to your life.”

Finally, thanks to a grant from the Office of Health Disparities, the Asian Pacific Development Center is teaming up with 9Health Fair to offer free cervical cancer screenings and information to Asian women at approximately 14 of the 9Health Fair sites.

For more information about the 2007 9Health Fair, please contact Angie Devlin at 303-698-4455 x 1302 or angie.devlin@9healthfair.org.

About 9Health Fair
9Health Fair is Colorado’s largest and most trusted non-profit health fair program that promotes health awareness and encourages individuals to assume responsibility for their own health. Created by a National Institutes of Health project and 9NEWS, 9Health Fair’s free and low cost health educational screening program has earned unique endorsements from the Colorado Medical Society, the Colorado Nurses Association and the Colorado Hospital Association. Since 1980, 9Health Fair has impacted 1.7 million lives.

As an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, 9Health Fair relies on sponsorship funding and grants to support its operations. 9Health Fair is proud of its financial management performance, keeping its administration and fundraising expense under 17 percent of its total budget, well under the industry average of 20-25 percent.

Major sponsors for the 2007 9Health Fair include 9NEWS, Quest Diagnostics, Longmont United Hospital, UniPath, Comcast, King Soopers/City Market, 5280 Magazine and Dex Media. Special thanks to The Colorado National Guard for its continued 9Health Fair support through delivering supplies to volunteers and sites around the state.

# # #