PAMPLIN – Why is Pamplin Fire & EMS sponsoring the Community Health Fair? “Pamplin is an underserved healthcare area of Virginia; many of the citizens in and around Pamplin are either un-insured or under-insured. This event will help bring free and discounted healthcare screenings, and education to the citizens of the area that could benefit from the services.”

Who all is involved with this event? “The Pamplin Volunteer Fire and EMS Department, The Mammograms-Annually-A-Must (M.A.A.M) volunteer group, The Alan B. Pearson Cancer Center, Centra Health and The Centra Foundation.”

What services will be provided? “We will be offering 16 free mammograms to females who qualify for the pre-screening, which has to be completed by April 5. Free PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) Test to any man over 40 years old, along with other discounted lab work including screenings for Cholesterol, Diabetes, and Thyroid deficiency just to name a few. There will be educators from Centra to talk about Breast Cancer, Sleep Disorders, Coronary Artery Disease (CAD), and Diabetes. The Virginia Blood Services will also be on site hosting a blood-drive, and due to the local blood shortage in the area, we could use anyone who donates to come out for this event.”

Is this going to be a one-time event? “Hopefully not, our plan is to make this at least an annual event with the possibility of increasing the health fair to twice-a-year, with increased screenings in the future.”

When and where is the health fair going to be? “The health fair will be April 9 at the Pamplin Volunteer Fire & EMS Department, in the old firehouse, with discounted lab screenings and PSA test from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and the mammograms and blood-drive will be from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., but please remember all mammogram screenings have to be complete by April 5. There will be no mammograms available to anyone other than the 16 pre-screened patients that day.”

How does one get the pre-screening completed? “They need to contact me, Paul Foster directly, at either (434) 941-1226 or by email at pefoster@hotmail.com.”