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Sara Lomax-Reese: Good afternoon, you are listening to the Tuesday edition of the Midday Café Health Quest Live. I am Sara Lomax-Reese and I will be here with you for the next hour. As many of you know we are gearing up for our next Word Speaks Symposium, State of Mind II, the Impact of Race, History and Cultural on Body, Mind and Spirit on Saturday, April 7th. A little bit later today we are going to be spending some time with one of our featured speakers, Ruth King, who is an emotional wellness expert and author of Healing Rage and you can go to www.900amwurd.com and click on the State of Mind banner to get more information and to get your tickets today. But first, we are joined in studio by Dr. Donee Patterson from Einstein. Good morning, good afternoon.
Donee Patterson, MD: Good afternoon Sara.
Lomax-Reese: Hi Dr. Donee. We also have in studio Reverend Leroy Miles, from Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church.
Rev. Leroy Miles: Hello and good morning.
Lomax-Reese: Good afternoon, I know, we are stuck in a time warp. And we also have Angela Stewart who is with Einstein as well. Welcome. Good afternoon.
Angela Stewart: Thank you.
Lomax-Reese: We are a little mike challenged, we have a nice full house in studio and what we are going to be talking about today as part of our Einstein Spotlight is an upcoming event that is happening on March 24th, that's this Saturday and it's a Know Your Numbers Health Initiative, the second annual and it is at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church and the Einstein Healthcare Network is one of the sponsors and the goal is to screen more than 1,000 men for hypertension, cholesterol, blood sugar, prostate and colorectal cancer, HIV, weight, height and BMI. So it sounds extremely comprehensive. Let me start with you Dr. Donee as I always do, what is Einstein's role in this really innovative program?
Patterson: We are so excited about partnering with Enon. This is a massive health fair; it is not just something that is put together on the fly; many, many people came together to put this together and we are constantly asking people to be active; be active in WURD, be active in this in our community, but we can't be active if we are not healthy. Or we are more effective if we are healthier. So here is an opportunity to know your numbers;that is what the event is called, Know Your Numbers. You will be so much more effective in your community if you know your numbers. So we want people to come out and learn about their blood pressure and cholesterol and Sara, you and I, we go back and forth all the time, right, about people having health insurance and not being screened and we want people to use this opportunity to be screened. Now I just want to take this time to tell you the top five killers of African American men and we've talked about this a little bit before so we know heart disease is number one of all races. Number two is cancer, so for men it is lung, prostate and then colon.
Lomax-Reese: In that order?
Patterson: In that order. Then in women it is stroke, but in men number 3 is accidents, so those accidents are car accidents, mostly car accidents, and then homicides. Number 4 is stroke and number 5 is COPD, which is lung disease. We are not addressing all of those things but we are addressing most of those things. We want people to come out and know their numbers because knowledge is power and then go from there and be healthier. Don't stophere, just knowing your numbers, but go forth and do something about it.
Lomax-Reese: So it is a free event; you don't have to have insurance, you just come as you are. I am going to come to you Reverend Leroy. Tell us a little bit about the structure of the day. You are obviously an African American man, you are very engaged at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church and share with us one, what Enon's commitment is and why this is kind of the year of the man and what that means and also, what are some of the things that will happen on Saturday March 24th?
Miles: Thank you. What we are hoping to do and this is our second annual event. What we have done is we have transformed the entire church into a hospital. Every office, every crevice,every nook of the church is going to be used for diagnostic testing for screenings, those types of things. Essentially what we have also done is we understand Saturdays are a big day for brothers. We usually get our hair cut; we do a lot of things that pertain to us on a Saturday. So that being said, we've also created what we call the man cave. We have a full compliment of barbers for the entire day, we also have chair massages, breakfast, lunch and dinner will be provided for the brothers who come and we are wrapping it around the concept of March Madness, so we have a big 12 foot by 12 foot screen that we drop and the games in all of their glory will be on the entire day. So it's really for brothers to come out in fellowship and come away empowered with their health.
Lomax-Reese: So they could arguably stay there all day because you've got breakfast, lunch and dinner, you've got all kinds of health and wellness. One of the things I really, and I remember listening to the promotion of the event last year and I was like wow, that is so innovative to have a barbershop, to have games, to have all of these other ancillary activities going on that will not only entice people to come but to have them stay and the health screenings are just an added benefit almost to, like you said, the fellowship aspect of it. I think there aren't enough opportunities for that kind of interaction and that fellowship which I think all of us crave.
Miles: Absolutely. You know and I know we've talked about it at adnauseam I would say around health disparities in our communities,so one of the concerns is brothers don't go to the doctors; they don't go to the hospital; they don't follow up. By bringing all of those things to the church, one, they trust us so when we say this is important, men respond because we said so, number one. But number two we do create a comfort level and environment where if it is your first time getting a digital rectal exam, you are doing it around a bunch of other brothers who, this may be their first time, or some of us have gone to it before and say it will be alright man, it's gonna be cool. You need to do this, you need to know. Ignorance is no longer bliss.
Lomax-Reese: So I want to bring in Angela Stewart, who is a nurse practitioner and I know you were very engaged in the program last year as well. So tell us what your role is going to be on Saturday in terms of the screenings and the health and wellness information.
Stewart: On Saturday, we have a bunch of screenings as we mentioned earlier. We are going to have the gentlemen register, if they haven't already registered, we will have them register in the computer lab at the church and then we will let them go to the different areas where we are going to be doing the screening. So they will get their blood pressures done, cholesterol, height,weight, BMI, cholesterol, those types of things as well as HIV testing. If they are eligible for prostate then they will have those done. What we are really encouraging is as we said before, is for the men to just come out and have a really good time in an atmosphere and environment where they can feel comfortable,doing this together as a group of men seemed to have worked for us last year. We had over 1200 men registered. We screen almost 1,000 men so we are hoping this year to get even more men to come out and to know their numbers.
Lomax-Reese: And it's from 8am to 8pm so it's a 12 hour, it's like a marathon almost and that creates lots of opportunities. People can come early; they can come midday; they can come later and be able to access this information. Before I go into some specific questions about men's health, how do people register; how do people sign up? What are the details on that? Angela?
Stewart: You can go on enontab.org and register through the website or you can also come the day of the event and register in the computer lab. We are encouraging you to do it ahead of time because we would just like to get a number to know how many men are going to be coming. We are prepared; we are ready to go. We've been working really hard; we are really excited about this event,so if you have a computer, you have access, you can do it through your home computer and if you don't, you can come to the church. We will have some men who are trained to do the registration and they can also help you. If you have any questions before that, you can call me at Einstein. My number is 215-456-8984 and I can answer any questions you may have.
Lomax-Reese: That is Angela Stewart, she is a nurse practitioner at Einstein and today we are talking with Dr. Donee Patterson and Reverend Leroy Miles and we are talking about the 2nd Annual Know Your Numbers Men's Health Initiative which is this Saturday, March 24th at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church and it's from 8am to 8pm and it's one of the largest screening events for men in the Philadelphia area. It is completely free; you don't have to show ID or insurance or anything like that. Breakfast, lunch and dinner are going to be served. It sounds like it's going to be a wonderful opportunity. Dr. Donee, I am curious, I am always wondering when we have these free events, people get screened, but what happens on Sunday, what happens on the day after? What happened last year? You had 1200 people who registered; I am sure a lot of people…I am sure not everybody was in pristine health. So what happens after the big event?
Patterson: That's an awesome question. My role in the event is to run a section called the triage section where if someone has a high sugar or high cholesterol or high blood pressure reading, they come and they are counseled there. We have trained people. We put so much thought into this. We have trained people that will tell them exactly what to do and there were a few people last year that needed to go to the emergency room. Their sugars were so high or their blood pressures were so high and I honestly believe we saved lives last year and I believe it's going to happen again this year because people don't always know if their sugars or blood pressures are high. So we also have a pretty extensive registry where if people need a physician that they can register right then and there and get an appointment right then and there to follow up. So I just really want to encourage people. Please don't waste this opportunity. So much time, effort,money, blood and sweat has gone into putting this event together,use this as a resource but don't stop there, make sure you followup on the information that you received.
Lomax-Reese: I want to invite callers, if you have a question it is 215-634-8065 or toll free, 866-361-0900, if you have a question for ourguests. We are talking about men's wellness; Know Your Numbers is an event happening this Saturday at Enon. One of the things we are doing is a big event on April 7th called Sate of Mind which is looking at behavioral health and violence as a public health issue, as a mental health issue, those kinds of things. Now this is a very comprehensive, the Know Your Numbers program is very comprehensive, but it seems very much focused on your numbers, your cholesterol, your blood pressure, HIV status and weight, BMI, all of those things. Is there anything outside of kind of the informal fellowship that is really going to provide some assistance, some support around behavioral health, mental health? Reverend Leroy?
Miles: If I could, real quick, one of the things, once we got the data back, the endocrinologist looked at the data and said you know what, this is a metabolic issue, men are suffering from metabolic syndrome. You need to create something to get the guys moving. Essentially what we did is we created a myriad ofopportunities around physical fitness and wellness, including stress reduction. So you can come, if you want to come early for the event on Saturday, you can come 7am every Saturday. We are out on the ball field at Enon and we have a boot camp going on. It's men and women; it's intense, but it is an opportunity to get moving, to relieve some stress. On just this past Sunday, we have 50 persons do the get your Rear in Gear which benefitted colon and rectum cancer. So a lot of these things….
Lomax-Reese: I like that play on words.
Miles: Exactly, get your Rear in Gear. But the thought was, you are right, a lot of this is men walking around carrying anger and the weight of the world on their shoulders so in addition to the knowing your numbers, in addition to the physical release that comes with exercise, we are also creating small group context. We just watched the movie Courageous as a group. There were 500 plus persons who came and watched the movie.
Lomax-Reese: That's a small group?
Miles: For Enon. But the thought was to come as men and share our emotions, be real, be transparent with one another. It's a holistic approach to health.
Lomax-Reese: That's outstanding; that's great. That is Reverend Leroy Miles and he is…what is your title at Enon?
Miles: I am the Associate Pastor of Pastoral Care and Counseling and so essentially what this is; this is an expanded definition of pastoral care. It includes mental heath, holistic approach to caring for the whole person.
Lomax-Reese: Do you still spin?
Miles: I ride outside.
Lomax-Reese: You ride outside?
Miles: Yes madam and run marathon and Tough Mudder, all kinds of things.
Lomax-Reese: We use to be in a spinning class together and that's how I met Reverend Leroy Miles, back in my spinning days.
Miles: A long time ago.
Lomax-Reese: I don't do that anymore either.
Miles: It was about 15 years ago.
Lomax-Reese: It doesn't seem that long again, but going back to the specific issue of men's health, and I'm going to ask you, Dr. Donee, what are some…because I know that African American men, there is a different relationship that black men have with the healthcare system and with healing in general and so what are some of the unique barriers to access for black men that this health fair, health conference, Is trying to break down?
Patterson: We are trying to make it very easy for them. A lot of times people, especially men, don't like things that are hard. The registration is not hard; it's very easy but even if you didn't want to register you can still come. We are making it very easy; you come, it's just a simple day, it's not a lot of thought,it's some play involved, but it is a very important topic, so we are just really trying to break that down for them.
Lomax-Reese: And Angela Stewart?
Stewart: We are trying to get rid of those stereotypes like a lot of men don't like to go to the doctors because they feel good, or they just don't think they have time to go. We want them to know that we are coming together; all the men are coming together; we are banding together, doing this as a unit and if we find something, it's OK, we can deal with it, we can deal with this together. We just want men to know that there is a level of comfort when you come in a group and you get these screenings done together and you don't have to go this alone. If you don't have health insurance, we are going to have people on site that are going to be able to point you in the right direction so that you can get health insurance. We are also giving out these discount cards at the end of the event if you get all of your screenings done, you will get a discount card that will give you access to different businesses within the community. If you want to go to Pep Boys, Rite Aid, Radio Shack, wherever it is that men go and whatever it is that they do, we are giving you the opportunity to be able to do that through this health event.
Lomax-Reese: We are going to take a quick break; I gotta get Reverend Leroy Miles'take on that because he is the only brother sitting in here and he's drinking some kombucha tea and I know he's a health focused individual but I want to get your take on some of the barriers. Not yet, we gotta take a quick break, we will be right back. We are talking about the upcoming Know Your Numbers Men's Health Initiative this Saturday, March 24th, 8am to 8pm at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church. It's the largest screening event for men in the Philadelphia area. Don't go away we will be right back.
And we are back. You are listening to Health Quest Live on 900am, WURD and today we are talking about the Know Your Numbers Men's Health Initiative on Saturday, March 24th and it's a huge opportunity for men in this region to come and get screened. It's all free; it's a lot of great information;getting screenings for hypertension, cholesterol, blood sugar,prostate and colorectal cancer, HIV, weight, height and BMI. Do you have to get screenings for all of these things or can you pick and choose?
Patterson: We are encouraging people to get everything done.
Lomax-Reese: How long would it take to get all of these screenings?
Patterson: It really doesn't take long because we thought bout it so much and so we have everything in one section. It's not like you have to go to five different places in this huge building. It's all in one place so it goes very quickly. It doesn't takevery long to check your height or blood pressure or prick your finger for cholesterol and sugar. It's all in one place andit doesn't take long at all. Within an hour or so you can getin and out.
Miles: We are asking a lot a couple hours, because again you have to get the haircut, you gotta get the chair message and so really about 3 hours is what we are asking for you to come so you are not rushed and you can really just enjoy ….
Patterson: The whole experience and it's going to be a little bit longer for men to get the prostate and colorectal information because there is a short information period surrounding by that.
Lomax-Reese: Before we went to break, Reverend Leroy Miles, we wanted you to speak to the issue of black men and access to healthcare because you are a black man.
Miles: Absolutely. I think society has taught us to be tough, to lead from the front; to protect our families and so as a result we don't have the luxury at times to kind of complain about an issue. Not that we are complaining, but just even acknowledging that we are human. So at the end of the day,brothers will, unless it is falling off, leaking or squeaking, we usually don't go and get it checked out, which is not always in our best interest. So the desire is to be proactive. Ladies you all go and get your stuff checked out. We are just saying bro, if you don't do it any other time but once a year, this is an annual event, come out, know your numbers get checked out and this would be a baseline for years to come.
Lomax-Reese: One of the things we hear a lot with African American women is that we are taking care of everybody else and so we don't take care of yourself so I think collectively, we need to take care of ourselves and each other better. One of the things that we were taking about offline is that we all need to encourage our brothers, our fathers, our husbands, our uncles, to attend this because that might make the difference between…or grab someone and say come on and let's go. Do it as a family; bring your boys with you and show up. Angela?
Stewart: Last year as a result of this event, people found out that they actually had prostate cancer and they had to get treatment. Had they not come, who knows, they may not be here today to talk about how the event was. I know sometimes it gets fearful and people don't wanna know if there is something wrong, but I always say it is better to prevent the disease process or the disease state than you come into the hospital and have me try to treat it. There was a point where I was really excited about being a practitioner in the hospital and taking care of patients, but I have gotten so weary with seeing men coming in, 20s and 30s year old having really weakened heart muscles and needing to have defibrillators put in or possibly transplants and then in my mind I was like, I needed to do more and that's when I decided that prevention was the key. That is why this health event is so important to me and that is why it has really been near and dear to my heart and I am just glad that Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church and Pastor Miles have taken the initiative to start something like this because it is so important.
Lomax-Reese: Absolutely and I think what I am hearing is we have to be more proactive. We can't just kind of sweep it under the rug and thing that it's going to go away. This is a prime opportunity for our community to really step out there and say look, and to your point Dr. Donee, you are making it as easy as you can so that there aren't any barriers; there aren't any obstacles to access this and it's fun.
Patterson: It's fun, its free, good food, good fellowship. I just really want to piggy back on something that Angela said. I saw a man just yesterday and he didn't follow up on some of the things, not at the screen last year but on some other things and he came to me for the first time and he was scared and that's why he didn't follow up and so I just want to encourage the listeners today just to know that a lot of time and thought has been put into this and we are encouraging you to come out and please, just get the information so you can have more information.
Lomax-Reese: I just want to ask, when you are getting these screenings done, do you get the feedback immediately. I'm sure you can get your blood pressure and things like that, but do you get some type of diagnostic assessment on the spot and if so, again, what do you do form there?
Stewart: Yes, you do. You will get your cholesterol results. We have a new system that we use. Usually cholesterol is done,they will say you need a fasting specimen, you will go to your doctor and they will draw blood and send it off to the lab. But with the new meters we are using you don't have to be fasting so you can eat before you have this test done and you will get your results within 5-7 minutes as well as your glucose levels within about 5-7 minutes and of course calculating your blood pressure,BMI, height and weight takes no time at all so it's very convenient, very quick, painless. You can get it done and then you can spend the rest of the day enjoying all the festivities and activities we have.
Miles: Including your HIV status, and that's a big piece of it. Soyou will come away with a one pager of all of your numbers on itwhich you can take to your healthcare provider if you so chose butyou will come away completely informed.
Patterson:: Theonly thing is for men who are eligible to get the prostate blood work screened, that will be sent away but we have someone who is totally on top of it and she follows up with every single person to make sure they know their numbers, because that can't be done on the spot. Everything else is done on the spot, they gt a printout and then they get their discount card for the city.
Lomax-Reese: Excellent. We are just about out of time. Just give the information one more time for the Know Your Numbers Men's Health Initiative. It's this Saturday, March 24th from 8am to 8pm at Enon Tabernacle Baptist Church. Dr. Donee, what are the details if people want to sign up?
Patterson: If you want to sign up you can go to Enon's website or you can g oto Einstein's website and just click on know your numbers and if you can click, click there, it walks you through the registration process. If you don't have a computer and you can't do it you can call 10-800-Einstein and you can also call Angela, can you give your number again?
Stewart: It is 215-456-8984.
Patterson: Or you can just show up that day and we will definitely take care of you.
Lomax-Reese: Excellent. Reverend Leroy, do you want to say anything? Final thought?
Miles: Final thought, special thanks to Janison as well as Gateway Health Systems for underwriting this event.
Lomax-Reese: Alright, and Einstein, thank you so much for being here and doing the work that you are doing.