| Medical Students for Minority Concerns’ Multicultural Health Fair The essence of community service |
By Heidi M. Pascual
It is no secret that thousands of people in Madison and Dane County, especially those with low
income and many of whom are people of color, either have very little access to health care or
none at all. The stark reality is that many just choose to ignore what they feel are “minor”
symptoms of illnesses, often until it is too late. They often do not know what ails them and are not
even aware of the health care resources available to them.
The organization Medical Students for Minority Concerns (MSMC) of the University of
Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health recognized this major problem more
than 20 years ago. Since then, every year, its members conduct a free “Multicultural Health Fair”
at a location accessible to everyone, focusing on the most disadvantaged areas of Madison. For
four years running, the Multicultural Health Fair has been held on the south side. In the past, the
fair had been held at East Towne Mall, an alternative school, and South Towne Mall (those were
the areas of concern at the time).
This year, the health fair was conducted at the Boys and Girls Club on Madison’s south side,
and Asian Wisconzine was there to witness the latest project of MSMC in action. There were
numerous informational tables set up by organizations and agencies providing health-related
services, a separate “private” space for screening, and smiling, uniformed medical students
greeting community members to the fair.
Co-chairs Weronica Horembala and David Nguyen, both second-year medical students, gave us
a glimpse of the day’s event that attracted hundreds of folks, of all colors, on the south side. Both
were involved in the Multicultural Health Fair last year in different capacities, although not as
“heavy” as this year when they took the leadership task from planning to execution. But both
agreed that the initial year of service to the community provided the inspiration to do more this
year.
“Last year, I did community organizing so I recruited organizations to come to the fair,”
Horembala recalled. “This year, I functioned as the co-chair, putting together the entire event.
We (with David Nguyen) had to do pretty much everything. We had to recruit other medical
students to help function under different committees to put this together, and to make sure that
they’re doing what they’re intended to be doing. This year, we had a huge focus on publicity
because we felt that the community doesn’t really know about this. This is the 21st year that this is
happening, so we really wanted to make sure that this is recognized and that people should take
advantage of it, because it’s available and because this is a resource that is free to the public .”
David Nguyen recalled that he dealt mostly with supplies last year. “I helped bring all the tables
and stuff in and did cholesterol screening,” he said. “Then I figured I can give more than that to
help out, so I signed up to be co-chair or coordinator this year. It’s pretty hectic; but everything has
worked out so far. I’m happy to see everybody here. The effort is worth it.”
Horembala acknowledged the importance of community outreach, as she pointed to the
different information booths. “We looked for coalitions that deal with health-related issues, like the
Tobacco Free Coalition,” she said. “We refer people to social agencies, like Joining Forces for
Families, that offer services to people who are underserved in health and have broader, social
needs as well. We recognize that it’s a very important thing. The Dane County Mental Health
Center is here because mental health is an issue that, while really overworked in general, is
definitely needed by people who can’t afford health care to begin with.”
Comparing this year’s health fair to that of last year’s, Horembala said that they did a better job
in certain areas this year. “I feel that we did a better job with our layout,” she acknowledged. “Our
screenings are the most personal, so that people don’t feel like their ‘business’ is in everybody’s
face. They can feel comfortable at the same time.”
Horembala was also proud to announce new services that were not available in years past. “Things
that are new this year is that we have registration for BadgerCare Plus, which is something new
and neat to get out to the community, because it encompasses a larger amount of families,” she
said. “We also have new diabetes screening, courtesy of UW-Pharmacy School which we didn’t
have in years past. So this year’s Fair is definitely greater in potential!”
Nguyen observed that more people came this year and that everything moved along very
smoothly. “Also new this year is, we have the St. Mary’s Happy Heart here,” he said. “We have
asthma checks and hearing checks, and those things are new, as well as, we have some folks here
from the UW Corrective Cardiology Department. They do counseling … nip it in the bud before
heart disease comes in and they’re here to talk to people as well.”
Like Horembala, Nguyen thought that the BadgerCare Plus registration offering was an
important addition to the Fair’s services this year. “I think the BadgerCare Plus is the biggest thing
because families with kids who do not have insurance will probably qualify for it. They just come
in, get settled here, and the BadgerCare people will do all the paper work for them.”
“I feel that this year, we had a better effort going into it,” Horembala added. “The medical
students working on this project were very dedicated and worked out everything ahead of time so
that we could pull together a comprehensive fair. And I think we did a better job outreaching too.
We have more residents here, people know where to go.”
Both co-chairs were elated by the number of people coming in to avail themselves of the many
resources available at no cost. They were grateful to all the participating organizations and
agencies that were willing to spend a day serving Madisonians who are in need of health-related
information and care.
“We are in school for a long time, and we tend to forget why we came into this field in the first
place,” Horembala admitted. “We’re always doing school, and we kind of forget the person behind
it. So when we have a chance to interact with the community and people we’d be working with in
the future, and give them the skills we feel that we’ve learned so far, and we’re able to give them
now, that makes us realize that we actually have proof of what we’re going to be doing and
wanting to be doing. I’m really happy to be able to provide them all for free. I feel wonderful!”
Nguyen compared the Multicultural Health Fair to a child that was conceived and birthed in nine
months, with the baby now ‘delivered,’ and pleasing everyone. “We started last year, just talking to
people,” he said. “A lot of this was talking to all these community organizations and partners. That’
s how we all got them to come today. We were calling back and forth and attending meetings and
all that.” With a big smile on his face, Nguyen looked around and nodded at their “baby” serving
Madison’s community with all its heart.
“So, I think that for a lot of us (in the medical school), we just have to be very active in this
movement and provide, as much as we can (as much) free services as we can,” Horembala said.
income and many of whom are people of color, either have very little access to health care or
none at all. The stark reality is that many just choose to ignore what they feel are “minor”
symptoms of illnesses, often until it is too late. They often do not know what ails them and are not
even aware of the health care resources available to them.
The organization Medical Students for Minority Concerns (MSMC) of the University of
Wisconsin-Madison School of Medicine and Public Health recognized this major problem more
than 20 years ago. Since then, every year, its members conduct a free “Multicultural Health Fair”
at a location accessible to everyone, focusing on the most disadvantaged areas of Madison. For
four years running, the Multicultural Health Fair has been held on the south side. In the past, the
fair had been held at East Towne Mall, an alternative school, and South Towne Mall (those were
the areas of concern at the time).
This year, the health fair was conducted at the Boys and Girls Club on Madison’s south side,
and Asian Wisconzine was there to witness the latest project of MSMC in action. There were
numerous informational tables set up by organizations and agencies providing health-related
services, a separate “private” space for screening, and smiling, uniformed medical students
greeting community members to the fair.
Co-chairs Weronica Horembala and David Nguyen, both second-year medical students, gave us
a glimpse of the day’s event that attracted hundreds of folks, of all colors, on the south side. Both
were involved in the Multicultural Health Fair last year in different capacities, although not as
“heavy” as this year when they took the leadership task from planning to execution. But both
agreed that the initial year of service to the community provided the inspiration to do more this
year.
“Last year, I did community organizing so I recruited organizations to come to the fair,”
Horembala recalled. “This year, I functioned as the co-chair, putting together the entire event.
We (with David Nguyen) had to do pretty much everything. We had to recruit other medical
students to help function under different committees to put this together, and to make sure that
they’re doing what they’re intended to be doing. This year, we had a huge focus on publicity
because we felt that the community doesn’t really know about this. This is the 21st year that this is
happening, so we really wanted to make sure that this is recognized and that people should take
advantage of it, because it’s available and because this is a resource that is free to the public .”
David Nguyen recalled that he dealt mostly with supplies last year. “I helped bring all the tables
and stuff in and did cholesterol screening,” he said. “Then I figured I can give more than that to
help out, so I signed up to be co-chair or coordinator this year. It’s pretty hectic; but everything has
worked out so far. I’m happy to see everybody here. The effort is worth it.”
Horembala acknowledged the importance of community outreach, as she pointed to the
different information booths. “We looked for coalitions that deal with health-related issues, like the
Tobacco Free Coalition,” she said. “We refer people to social agencies, like Joining Forces for
Families, that offer services to people who are underserved in health and have broader, social
needs as well. We recognize that it’s a very important thing. The Dane County Mental Health
Center is here because mental health is an issue that, while really overworked in general, is
definitely needed by people who can’t afford health care to begin with.”
Comparing this year’s health fair to that of last year’s, Horembala said that they did a better job
in certain areas this year. “I feel that we did a better job with our layout,” she acknowledged. “Our
screenings are the most personal, so that people don’t feel like their ‘business’ is in everybody’s
face. They can feel comfortable at the same time.”
Horembala was also proud to announce new services that were not available in years past. “Things
that are new this year is that we have registration for BadgerCare Plus, which is something new
and neat to get out to the community, because it encompasses a larger amount of families,” she
said. “We also have new diabetes screening, courtesy of UW-Pharmacy School which we didn’t
have in years past. So this year’s Fair is definitely greater in potential!”
Nguyen observed that more people came this year and that everything moved along very
smoothly. “Also new this year is, we have the St. Mary’s Happy Heart here,” he said. “We have
asthma checks and hearing checks, and those things are new, as well as, we have some folks here
from the UW Corrective Cardiology Department. They do counseling … nip it in the bud before
heart disease comes in and they’re here to talk to people as well.”
Like Horembala, Nguyen thought that the BadgerCare Plus registration offering was an
important addition to the Fair’s services this year. “I think the BadgerCare Plus is the biggest thing
because families with kids who do not have insurance will probably qualify for it. They just come
in, get settled here, and the BadgerCare people will do all the paper work for them.”
“I feel that this year, we had a better effort going into it,” Horembala added. “The medical
students working on this project were very dedicated and worked out everything ahead of time so
that we could pull together a comprehensive fair. And I think we did a better job outreaching too.
We have more residents here, people know where to go.”
Both co-chairs were elated by the number of people coming in to avail themselves of the many
resources available at no cost. They were grateful to all the participating organizations and
agencies that were willing to spend a day serving Madisonians who are in need of health-related
information and care.
“We are in school for a long time, and we tend to forget why we came into this field in the first
place,” Horembala admitted. “We’re always doing school, and we kind of forget the person behind
it. So when we have a chance to interact with the community and people we’d be working with in
the future, and give them the skills we feel that we’ve learned so far, and we’re able to give them
now, that makes us realize that we actually have proof of what we’re going to be doing and
wanting to be doing. I’m really happy to be able to provide them all for free. I feel wonderful!”
Nguyen compared the Multicultural Health Fair to a child that was conceived and birthed in nine
months, with the baby now ‘delivered,’ and pleasing everyone. “We started last year, just talking to
people,” he said. “A lot of this was talking to all these community organizations and partners. That’
s how we all got them to come today. We were calling back and forth and attending meetings and
all that.” With a big smile on his face, Nguyen looked around and nodded at their “baby” serving
Madison’s community with all its heart.
“So, I think that for a lot of us (in the medical school), we just have to be very active in this
movement and provide, as much as we can (as much) free services as we can,” Horembala said.
(From the top) Co-chairs Weronica Horembala
(L) and David Nguyen wanted the public to
take advantage of the free health screenings
and health-related resources available in the
Madison community at the annual Multicultural
Health Fair, spearheaded by the UW-Madison
Medical Students for Minority Concerns; (L-R)
Dr. Gloria Hawkins, Kevin Thao (Second-year
medical student) and sister Pang; (above, L-R)
Third-year Pharmacy students Rosemery Cuya,
Kojua Lor, and Andy Ince were among the
volunteer students who served the Madison
community at the health fair; (below) another
group of volunteer students with a “client,”
Sadie Pearson; (bottom) a group of medical
students assess a patient's medical condition
through interview.
(L) and David Nguyen wanted the public to
take advantage of the free health screenings
and health-related resources available in the
Madison community at the annual Multicultural
Health Fair, spearheaded by the UW-Madison
Medical Students for Minority Concerns; (L-R)
Dr. Gloria Hawkins, Kevin Thao (Second-year
medical student) and sister Pang; (above, L-R)
Third-year Pharmacy students Rosemery Cuya,
Kojua Lor, and Andy Ince were among the
volunteer students who served the Madison
community at the health fair; (below) another
group of volunteer students with a “client,”
Sadie Pearson; (bottom) a group of medical
students assess a patient's medical condition
through interview.