Members of CAHS’ Prevention Team represented the agency at the Well-Ahead Louisiana Public Health and Community Wellness Fair, hosted March 22 by the Louisiana Department of Health at the Horace W. Moody Intramural Sports Complex at Southern University in Baton Rouge.
CAHS Program Monitor Supervisor Yolanda Yancy, RPP, and Program Monitor Tamara Jones, PSIT, informed attendees about CAHS’ various services, the national 988 Suicide Helpline, and the dangers of vaping, fentanyl, and binge drinking.
Yancy and Jones also warned attendees that youth are now buying and selling illicit drugs online and communicating about drugs via text messages. The pair provided information about decoding emojis used to represent drug transactions and urged parents to routinely check what their children are texting to help prevent drug use and misuse.
The fair promoted community access to health resources, wellness, and chronic disease prevention. The event also featured an exposition to inspire youth to consider and pursue medical and public health careers.
Services at the fair included nutrition education, health screenings, medical simulations, self-care management, tobacco use prevention, stress management, healthy food demonstrations, healthy aging information, free haircuts provided by Ray J’s College of Hair, and an opportunity to donate blood through Vitalant’s mobile unit.
Attendees won door prizes and received additional information and resources from several other agencies that included the Louisiana Department of Children and Family Services, Humana, Eyemart Express, WellCare, Louisiana Healthcare Connections, AmeriHealth Caritas Louisiana, LSU AgCenter, and NAMI Louisiana.