ODEN, Ind. (WTWO/WAWV)— Daviess Community Hospital offered some free test and health screenings for members of the community as part of their health fair in Oden, Ind., Friday. A health fair like this can be beneficial for the community.
CEO of Daviess Community Hospital Justin Harris wants everyone to know that Daviess Community Hospital is for the community.
“We want people to know that the Daviess Community Hospital is here for our people, is here for our community here for our city,” Harris said. “Daviess community, that’s why it’s called Daviess Community Hospital because we are for the people. We are a community hospital, and so what the community needs, we are going to seek to deliver and provide those services right here in their town.”
Residents came out to take advantage of the free health services that Daviess Community Hospital was offer. These tests and screenings are something that Dr. Ethan Oates mentioned has helped save lives in the past.
“We had several patients last year that ended up having these tests done and within a matter of weeks, we found some critical problems and a few of them ended up having open heart surgery within a month,” Dr. Oates said. “It’s a really good event we’re looking forward to being here every year and making sure that the community here is served very well.”
Some services being done at the health fair, like a Pap Smear, came at a cost, but Family Nurse Practitioner Daniell Summers mentioned that having a test like that done at the health fair can be important for someone who might not have health insurance.
“Definitely beneficial if you don’t have insurance to get it at a lower cost than if you were to go to a clinic and have it and pay for it out of pocket,” Summers said. “It’s a good opportunity because if you don’t have your Pap smear can turn into cervical cancer that you don’t know that you have until you start having problems and once you figure out that you have cervical cancer, it’s pretty far along.”
Jack Skipper is a local resident who participated in the health fair in-between doctor appointments, and he mentioned that he learned something new about his own health.
“The young lady over at the periphery artery place informed me about how my calves tightened up, and I thought it was for, I’m anaerobic I lift weights, and she’s telling me I need to do aerobic, because of the heart,” Skipper said. “The anaerobic lifting weights is not as good for your heart muscle as aerobic and she’s telling me that, when my calves lock up, that’s an indication of not enough oxygen to my calves. That was pretty important information that I’ve never heard before and I’ve been lifting for forty years.”
Harris mentioned that Daviess Community Hospital wants the community to be their top priority.
“Today, in health care, it is very difficult for rural hospitals to stay alive,” Harris said. “If we can do that in a community that supports us, we will ultimately give back everything we have to our citizens.”
Harris also mentioned that the hospital plans to have lots of growth over the next 12 months so that way residents can stay closer to home for their appointments and medical procedures. To learn more about Daviess Community Hospital and all they have to offer, visit their website.
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