NMCC student nurses to take annual health fair to the community Sept. 26

    PRESQUE ISLE – Northern Maine Community College nursing students are again taking their annual health fair out to the community this fall and plan to present the event in conjunction with the annual Fall and Winter Expo planned for The Forum in Presque Isle Sept. 26-27.
    Accordingly, the 40 students enrolled in the third semester of the associate degree nursing program are preparing educational displays relevant to the theme of the show Saturday, Sept. 26, from 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
    Eleven different health education topics are being prepared by the students for the event, which include seasonal and A1N1 influenza, common winter illnesses, commonly acquired MRSA, hypothermia and frostbite prevention, substance abuse, and stress management and coping strategies. There will also be information on the benefits of activity, winter sports safety, ergonomics and back safety, fall and winter driving safety, and nutrition for sports and energy.
    In addition to the informational exhibits, this will be the first year NMCC nursing students will assist at the Expo giving out flu shots. Cary Medical Center will host the free seasonal flu shot clinic during the Expo and NMCC second-year students will assist with the clinic Saturday.
    The health fair was added to the nursing curriculum to provide the senior students with an opportunity to plan and present a structured teaching project in a public health format. According to members of the nursing faculty, the opportunity to partner with the Fall and Winter Expo, coordinated by the NMCC Foundation, is ideal to meeting that objective.
    “We are excited about the opportunity for our students to reach a variety of people from the community with health information related to winter activities,” said Eileen McDougal, nursing instructor and one of the lead coordinators of the health fair. “There will be something of interest in the displays for people of all ages.”
    Topics were selected collaboratively by NMCC nursing faculty members and the students with a concentration on issues related to the fall and winter seasons. Once a comprehensive list was developed, students signed up to work on specific projects according to their interest, with three or four students working in each area. Following the topic selection, each team is responsible for developing objectives and an outline of the information they plan to present. They then access the resources necessary to present their topic.
    Each student-researched topic will be presented at an individual booth staffed by the group working on the specific project.
    In addition to the 25 students participating in the health fair project who are physically taking courses on the Presque Isle campus, 15 second-year students enrolled in NMCC’s nursing program who are taking classes at the Houlton Higher Education Center in southern Aroostook will also be taking part.
    The NMCC Health Fair follows the first semester when students learn the concepts of teaching/learning in the public health context and the second semester when students are required to present a clinically-based topic to peers. In their final semester, students participate in the Fort Fairfield Middle School health fair.
    For more information, call 760-1188.