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An Ounce of Prevention

May 16, 2008

If people can’t reach the medical services they need, then bring those services to them.

That’s the idea behind the University of Southern Maine nursing program’s ongoing involvement with Casco Bay Fishing and Island Community Partnership, which serves the health care needs of fishermen and their families.

Eight USM nursing students put that idea into practice this spring when they held a free health screening clinic for residents of Great Chebeague Island.

“Free screenings are among the most important things in health care,” said Jay LaPlante, a junior from Saco. “They bring down costs because they help you catch the disease process before it really occurs.”

Serving those in need
LaPlante and his classmates spent the morning checking blood pressure and blood sugar levels of about 30 island residents. They also offered tetanus shots for a small fee.

“It's important to bring these services to the island because some people have a hard time getting to the mainland,” said island resident Ginny Ballard, a physician's assistant. “It's a wonderful opportunity to stop by and get checked out. If something needs to be addressed immediately, we tell them to follow up with their doctor. I can make a note to get after them in a few days, to make sure they've done that.”

An added dimension
Shannon Mulkern '08 grew up on nearby Peaks Island. The majority of her workplace experience, or senior practicum, came at the neonatal intensive care unit at Maine Medical Center in Portland. But, she said, the island outreach added an important dimension to her education.

In clinic settings such as this one, students practice their skills in patient education, she said. That is the delicate art of welcoming, engaging, and informing complete strangers, all in a matter of minutes.

“This is good experience for us to get out and interact with patients,” Mulkern said. “It's important to come to places where services are needed and at least offer them. People are pretty happy we're here.”

Count lifelong island resident Donna Damon among them.

“It's really important to take advantage of opportunities like this,” she said. “I've already found something that's a concern to me that I might not have picked up on if I'd waited a couple of months and gone to my regular physical.”

Community nursing close up
The project is the product of a three-semester required course during which undergraduate nursing students learn to work with community groups to provide health services for underserved populations.

Many of these students, for example, had worked with the partnership in the fall to provide health education to children in Long Island's two-room school, and conduct similar screenings clinics on Cliff Island, at the Casco Bay Lines terminal in Portland, and at the annual Maine Fishermen's Forum in Rockland.

Dan Allen, a senior from Portland, helped set up the trip to Chebeague. Among the biggest lessons learned?

“Free clinics are expensive,” he said.

While the partnership helped by securing reduced rates for the ferry ride and trimming other overhead costs, students needed to raise funds for equipment, such as gloves, lancets, and informational booklets. They held bake sales and sold commemorative sweatshirts to raise the money they needed.

Andrea Korda-Willerson '08 of Falmouth said they would provide a detailed report on inventory for the next group of students. Next year, more booklets are a must.

And that's a good sign.

“(Residents) are coming here to get an education,” Allen said. “If they come out with a couple of points to take home, then we've achieved our goal.”

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