WHAT:   Nearly 140 Oregon Health & Science University’s medical, nursing, dental, pharmacy and physician assistant students will provide free health screenings to uninsured men, women and children, under the guidance of OHSU faculty. The “Health Screening Fair” is part of “Cover the Uninsured Week” at OHSU and will include:

•  Blood pressure and body mass index checks
•  Medication counseling (bring prescriptions)
•  Vision tests/eye exams
•  Foot exams
•  Diabetes education and counseling
•  Ear and hearing exams
•  Hygiene kits

“Planning the events of Cover the Uninsured Week has brought the OHSU community together, and it brings participating students into the Portland community. As a future registered nurse, I recognize the need to understand the challenges facing underserved and uninsured individuals in my community,” said Heather Hastings, fourth-year nursing student in charge of coordinating the OHSU School of Nursing’s contributions to “Cover the Uninsured Week.”

WHEN:   Sunday, April 18, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

WHERE:  O’Bryant Square, S.W. 9th and S.W. Washington Aves., downtown Portland

DETAILS:   Other “Cover the Uninsured” lectures, activities include:

Monday, April 12 — OHSU Auditorium (Old Library building), Marquam Hill Campus
•  Noon — “EDUCAID: What if the U.S. Systems of Education and Health Care Were More Alike,” Jennifer Devoe, M.D., D.Phil., national expert on health care reform and children’s access to care, and a professor of family medicine in the OHSU School of Medicine.

•  1 p.m. — “Project Access NOW: An Innovative and Sustainable Specialty Care Model,” Linda Nilsen Solares, executive director, Project Access NOW.

Tuesday, April 13 — OHSU Auditorium (Old Library building), Marquam Hill Campus
•  Noon — “Access Assured: An Innovative and Sustainable Primary Care Model,”
John Saultz, M.D., chairman of family medicine, OHSU School of Medicine.

Wednesday, April 14 — OHSU School of Nursing, Room 358/364, Marquam Hill Campus
•  11:30 a.m. — Central City Concern employees, some of whom are former clients now working for the organization, will discuss their experience with addiction, homelessness and struggling to get medical care.

Friday, April 17 — OHSU Hospital Auditorium, eighth floor, Room 8B60
•  1 p.m. — “The Evolution of a Free Clinic and How it Fits Into the Greater Portland Safety Net,” James Reuler, M.D., founder and director of the Wallace Medical Concern, and a professor of medicine (general internal medicine and geriatrics) OHSU School of Medicine, Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center.

•  2 p.m. — “Update on Health Reform in Salem From the Author of House Bills 2009 and 2116,” Mitch Greenlick, Ph.D., Oregon State Representative and professor emeritus of public health and preventive medicine, OHSU School of Medicine

Saturday, April 17 — OHSU Auditorium (Old Library building), Marquam Hill Campus
•  9 a.m. — “Hills for Humanity Run.” Click here to register.

# # #

About Cover the Uninsured Week
Cover the Uninsured Week (CTUW) is a project of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and has been a student-led initiative at OHSU for more than four years. CTUW raises awareness and builds support for increased coverage among policy-makers, health care professionals, grassroots advocates, faith leaders, the business community and active citizens. OHSU’s medical, dental, nursing, physician assistant, and pharmacy students lead and participate in CTUW events in order to help shape the health care world that they themselves will soon occupy as tomorrow’s health care professionals. Visit the Cover the Uninsured Week Web site for more information.

About Oregon Health & Science University
Oregon Health & Science University is the state's only health and research university and Oregon's only academic health center. OHSU is Portland's largest employer and the fourth largest in Oregon (excluding government). OHSU's size contributes to its ability to provide many services and community support activities not found anywhere else in the state. It serves patients from every corner of the state, and is a conduit for learning for more than 3,400 students and trainees. OHSU is the source of more than 200 community outreach programs that bring health and education services to every county in the state.