Snake River High School and Idaho State University to host third annual community health fair

Idaho State University health professions students under the supervision of clinical faculty will provide the services, which include screening for blood glucose levels, oral health, vision, hearing, blood pressure and heart rates.

This is the third year that SRHS has put on the community event which is a part of a medical Spanish dual enrollment class taught by Jackie Alvarez, a teacher at SRHS.

“This health fair is a win-win opportunity for the community and my students. The kids get real-world interpreting experience and participants gain access to important health care services,” says Alvarez.

Alvarez started teaching the class for the 2015-16 school year when ISU’s Physician Assistant Studies Program received a five-year federal grant to address health disparities among Hispanic and Latino patients. The PA program partnered with ISU’s Department of Global Studies and Languages, which offers a bachelor’s degree in Spanish for the Health Professions, to bring this class to SRHS. The goal is to introduce a younger audience to future health care careers. The high school students will help interpret between the patient and health care provider.

“We wanted to give students a way to use their new skills and abilities to be of service to their communities,” says Helen Cathleen Tarp, director of the Spanish for the Health Professions program at ISU.

The grant will end in the summer of 2020.

 For more information, contact Valentin Garcia at garcvale@isu.edu or 208-373-1830.