NMCC student nurses to take annual health fair out to the community Sept. 29

    PRESQUE ISLE – Northern Maine Community College nursing students are taking their annual health fair, traditionally held on the College campus, out to the community this fall and plan to present the event in conjunction with the first annual Fall and Winter Sports and Recreation Show planned for The Forum in Presque Isle Sept. 29-30.     Accordingly, the 21 students enrolled in the third semester of the associate degree nursing program are preparing educational displays relevant to the theme of the show on Saturday, Sept. 29, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m.
    Eight different health education topics are being prepared by the students for the event, which include frostbite prevention and treatment, stress management and coping strategies, hypothermia prevention and treatment, common winter illnesses, benefits of activity, seasonal affective disorder, winter sports safety, and energy, nutrition and exercise.
    The health fair was added to the nursing curriculum to provide the senior students with an opportunity to plan and present a structured teaching project in a public health format.
    According to members of the nursing faculty, the opportunity to partner with the Fall and Winter Sports and Recreation Show, coordinated by the NMCC Foundation, is ideal to meeting that objective.
    “We are excited about the opportunity for our students to reach a variety of people from the community with health information related to winter sports activities,” said Eileen McDougal, nursing instructor and one of the lead coordinators of the health fair.
    “There will be something of interest in the displays for people of all ages.”
    Topics were selected collaboratively by NMCC nursing faculty members and the students with a concentration on issues related to the fall and winter seasons.
    Once a comprehensive list was developed, students signed up to work on specific projects according to their interest, with two or three students working in each area.
    Following the topic selection, each team is responsible for developing objectives and an outline of the information they plan to present. They then access the resources necessary to present their topic.
    Each student-researched topic will be presented at an individual booth staffed by the group working on the specific project.
    In addition to the 14 students participating in the health fair project who are physically taking courses on the Presque Isle campus, seven second-year students enrolled in NMCC’s nursing program who are taking classes at a distance at the Houlton Higher Education Center will present their findings.
    “It is our intent that the senior nursing students develop their ability to deliver health education in a public setting while also benefiting attendees of the show by providing information that can enhance their health during the fall and winter seasons,” said McDougal.
    “What a great venue to achieve both objectives.”
    The NMCC Health Fair follows the first semester when students learn the concepts of teaching/learning in the public health context, and the second semester when students are required to present a clinically-based topic to their peers.
    In their final semester, students participate in the Fort Fairfield Middle School health fair.
    Members of the public are invited and encouraged to attend the NMCC Health Fair Saturday, Sept. 29 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. during the first annual Fall and Winter Sports and Recreation Show at The Forum in Presque Isle.
    For more information on the event, contact the NMCC Foundation at 760-1188.