The Minority-Focused Alliance of Pre-health Students, or MAPS, of Cal State Long Beach held their second annual free health fair in Bell, Calif. on Sunday.
The event was hosted at the Aztlan Clinic where more than 58 students, six doctors and three medical students from University of California, Los Angeles volunteered and provided services.
At the health fair, free general screenings were available to the public, including vision, blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol checks.
In addition, a nutrition forum, which touched on subjects such as obesity and dieting, was presented for the public.
MAPS started in 2007 to encourage and expose the field of medicine to CSULB pre-health students on minority-focused issues and community services.
MAPS President Stephanie Orozco said the health fair was a great opportunity for students to get involved with the community.
“MAPS is a group of college students with a common cause of going to grad school, but with also serving the community,” Orozco said. “Many of these people don’t have the money to get insurance or see a doctor, so we help them by providing a physician to help them check their [health] and it is a great opportunity to learn about health and nutrition.”
Fortino Naranja heard about the health fair during the week, and decided to attend the event after his wife started feeling ill.
“[The service] has been great and I’m really glad the youth is getting involved like this with the community,” Naranja said. “It has been great that [the students] are helping us because most of the times we don’t have the finances to pay for medical services and I’m glad there are resources like this in our community.”
MAPS liaison Michael Lozano said this is a great chance to help the city in need of medical services.
“This is a win-win situation for the students and the city,” Lozano said. “It’s really hands-on and we do something for the community and the pre-health students for this organization. The city of Bell has been in the national spotlight, and this is a positive way to show that the people really care about their health.”
One of the doctors on site, Arash Lalezary, said that he usually volunteers in health fairs and events when he has time, especially in low-income communities.
He said these communities are truly in need of medical services and need much attention.
“[People at health fairs are] either minorities who can’t afford health insurance or it is not provided by the employer, or they have low-income and can’t afford health insurance if they knew how,” Lalezary said. “This can lead to people getting sick and not having health insurance, which can be a bad situation. So this is the tip of the iceberg in a way where we can help [the community].”
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