Members of the Sacramento community will have the chance to receive free health screenings this Saturday from the UC Davis School of Medicine’s student-run clinics at the 10th annual Ulezi Family Health Fair, part of the Oak Park Summer concert series.
The main sponsors of the event are the student-run Imani clinic along with the Davis chapter of the Student National Medical Association. Other sponsors include office of Sacramento City Councilmember Lauren R. Hammond, the California Medical Association Foundation and the Office of Community and Government Relations at the UC Davis Health System.
“As part of the Oak Park community we take pride in educating and being a reliable resource for our patients and beyond,” said Tracy Burns, a co-director of the Imani Clinic in an e-mail interview. “Imani Clinic is involved because we have a vested interest in closing health disparities, preventing chronic disease and treating people in a compassionate and competent manner.”
The Imani Clinic, named after the Swahili word meaning “faith,” focuses on medical students’ faith in the strength of the community, particularly to the African American community and the students’ ability to address its medical needs and social realities, according to the clinic’s website.
“We try and catch those individuals that fall through the cracks of the current health care system,” said Kelly Kahari, a co-director of Imani. “We are student run clinics, so we have a limited amount of resources and have to use inventive ideas to make clinic run smoothly on a limited budget.”
These student-run clinics typically provide a wide variety of health services for patients.
“[The clinics] provide free services on Saturdays or Sundays,” said Victor Lee, co-director of the Imani clinic in an e-mail interview. “Services provided include the following: chronic conditions (HTN, diabetes, high cholesterol), work and school physicals, minor infections, female health (mammograms, pelvic exams) and other preventative care.”
Other clinics such as the Willow Clinic will be providing education on depression, the Joan Viteri Memorial Clinic will have a mobile HIV test and the Shifa clinic will have body mass index and waist-hip ratio measurements. The Imani Clinic will be providing diabetes education and glucose testing.
“We hope that through our services these patients can better get a hold on their conditions,” said Kahari.
Brooke Voung, one of the five co-directors of the Imani Clinic, said the concert portion of the fair expects to draw 3,000 people to the show on Saturday. The Imani clinic hopes to get at least 500 people to attend the health fair this year due to the expansion of the fair and the publicity, Voung said.
A children’s fair will also be available as part of Saturday’s events, with health power modules to educate children on good health, along with carnival games, crafts and a jump house.
Other events include education about health and safety resources, interactive games and activities and performances by local artists The Dramatics and Pieces of a Dream, among others.
ANGELA RUGGIERO can be reached at campus@californiaaggie.com.
