Big Sandy Area Community Action Program (BSACAP) held their annual Community Health Fair on Thursday at Johnson County Middle School in Paintsville. The free event assisted Johnson and Magoffin County residents to connect with healthcare providers in the area.
Residents were treated to free EKG’s, sports physicals for kids and teens, non-fasting blood work, A1C checks, vision screenings, information on diabetes prevention, health insurance options, vision screenings, the opportunity to connect one-on-one with healthcare providers in the area, and information about jobseeker programs in the area.
BSACAP is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the providing comprehensive services to low-income families in order to help them improve their economic situation. Kim Vicars, BSACAP’s Community Service Block Grant Manager, explained that each year the organization conducts a survey of area citizens in order to learn about their most pressing concerns. Vicars stated that health has consistently ranked among the top five concerns for the last several years.
“This Health Fair is one way we are working to tailor our services to the specific needs of the communities we serve,” she said. “It helps us to reach out to some of the most vulnerable people in our community and provide them with information about the healthcare options available to them and the vital health services they may need.”
BSACAP Executive Director Mike Howell explained, “At BSACAP, we fight poverty and promote economic development by helping individuals and families in our area achieve self-sufficiency. We provide job and workforce services for people of all ages, college scholarships, the Garden Seed nutrition program, the Weatherization Assistance Program, and many other programs, but we know that the health of our citizens is the foundation of the educational and economic success of our region, and we want to work to ensure a strong and healthy workforce is available.”
Organizations represented this year were the Anthem BlueCross BlueShield, the Big Sandy Diabetes Coalition, Big Sandy Health Care, Highlands Regional Medical Center, Johnson County Health Department, Kentucky Blood Center, Kings Daughters Medical Center, Mountain Comprehensive Care’s Homeplace Clinic, Paul B. Hall Medical Center, and The Salvation Army.
The Community Health Fair is funded, in part, by the Community Services Block Grant made available by the Cabinet for Health and Family Services and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. For more information about Big Sandy Area Community Action Program, in Johnson County call (606) 789-3641 and in Magoffin County call (606) 349-2217.
