MOSES LAKE - The major healthcare providers of Central Washington will meet under one roof on Saturday for the first Central Washington Health and Wellness Expo. The event will be held at the Big Bend Community College ATEC building from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and will feature information, giveaways and fun learning opportunities about health for all ages.

Though a few providers have hosted their own health fairs in the past, a combined effort of this magnitude is unprecedented, according to Expo organizer Tera Redwine.

Redwine said that upon entrance, each guest will be given a passport, which they can take to the various booths, activities, and speakers for stamps. At the end of their journey, participants can turn in their passports for prizes.

Opportunities for stamps will abound with a continuous stream of healthcare professionals speaking throughout the day on topics ranging from diabetes care and prevention, to childhood nutrition and senior services. Plenty of entertainment for younger guests will be available as well, including tie-dye and a teddy bear clinic.

Sodexo catering will serve nutritious meals and snacks, and bilingual staff will be available to help Spanish-speaking guests get the healthcare information they're looking for. The Expo will feature Active Aging, Healthy Kids, health screenings, women's and men's health, senior services and more. The goal, said Redwine, is to encourage all attendees to be more healthy.

"Basically it's a free, fun event that's good for the whole family," Redwine said.

Moses Lake Community Health

Sheila Chilson, of Moses Lake Community Health, said their booth will focus on infant and childcare.

"We'll have lots of 'well baby' tips," she said. "We'll teach you how to safely bathe your baby and how to change a diaper. We want to feature the wide variety of wrap-around services we offer for new parents."

According to Chilson, MLCH will have a pediatric dentist as their keynote speaker on the seminar stage.

For younger guests, MLCH will host a tie-dye station outside the building where kids can color their own T-shirt to take home.

"Even if it's raining that day, we've got a canopy planned out," Chilson said. That way, kids can get their hands in; it'll be something that will draw the whole family."

MLCH will also feature staff at a separate insurance booth, who will be ready to help guests understand the new healthcare law, to take effect on Oct. 1. Each participant can fill out a form to determine their benefit eligibility under the new system.

"It's a real turning point for our community that we have the ability to insure so many," Chilson said. "At the Expo, the healthcare community will come together to help people navigate this new marketplace."

Before the Expo, people can investigate the new rules for themselves at www.wahealthplanfinder.org.

Moses Lake Clinic

The Moses Lake Clinic will host a teddy bear clinic at the Expo, Jeanette Woods said. At the MLC booth, kids can pretend to bandage, vaccinate, and nurse their teddy bears back to health. After learning about how to keep their bear (and themselves) healthy, each child will get to take a teddy home with them.

"The point of the teddy bear clinic is to build a relationship with these kids," Woods said. "It's about teaching them what goes on at a doctor's office so they're not so scared when they have to visit the real thing."

Speakers from MLC will include: Dr. Kerr in orthopedics, Dr. Richards and Dr. Yawney in ophthalmology, and Dr. Paluch in pediatrics. Also on hand will be staff to explain insurance proceedings.

"I think this is a great opportunity for the community to see us (healthcare providers) working together as partners to serve the greater good," Woods said. "All of us are vested in the success of the system to create a healthier society."

Samaritan Healthcare

Connie Opheikens, of Samaritan Healthcare, said their booth will provide several tests to gauge physical health.

Guests can have their body fat composition measured via a specially equipped scale which calculates both body fat and body water.

A physical therapist will screen patients for neck and back injuries - one of the most common ailments in the United States.

Courtesy of Samaritan's Diagnostic Imaging staff, bone density will be measured via a quick heel scan. This machine will test participants' risk of bone loss or future fractures.

Finally, a diabetes educator will perform finger sticks to test for the common disease.

According to Opheikens, Samaritan also hopes to have an activity for kids, but is not sure yet what it will be. A possibility Samaritan officials have discussed is a jump rope station to encourage kids to stay active.

"We want the public to be engaged in their own health," Opheikens said. "We want to give them the information to be able to help themselves in addition to the services our providers offer. The more education we can give people, the more they can take action."

Columbia Basin Hospital

Alayna Lodi, of Columbia Basin Hospital, hopes to involve the wider community in the Expo.

"We want to make people aware of the ways they can get out and be active," Lodi said. "Obesity is a big problem in this country, and there are so many ways to fix that in the Columbia Basin - soccer, wrestling, karate, cross-fit... the list goes on."

The Columbia Basin Hospital booth will also feature information on healthy senior living, especially staying fit at an older age, stability and fall-prevention.

"It's great that we've now got a centralized location (for the Expo)," Lodi said. "It should make people feel really good that we're all here together for the same reason."

BBCC Dollar Dash

The Expo will also coincide with Big Bend Community College's Dollar Dash.

The event, according to coordinator Judy Oakes, is a fun run for all ages to help raise money for BBCC scholarships. The course will begin outside the ATEC Building, where the Health Expo will take place, and continue around BBCC's campus. The Dollar Dash will begin at 9:30 a.m., with sign-in from 7:30 a.m. until shortly before the event begins.

"It's always a lot of fun and we think it will fit in nicely with the Health Expo," Oakes said. "We'll have people inside getting healthy and people outside getting healthy."

Those interested in supporting BBCC students at the Dollar Dash can register online at www.signmeup.com/91433 or at multiple venues throughout Moses Lake, including the Chamber of Commerce, Parks and Recreation, or BBCC itself. The entry fee will be $25, which Oakes said will cover both a donation to the scholarship fund and a T-shirt for the participant.

People can register at the event, but aren't guaranteed a T-shirt because shirts had to be ordered in advance.

"We had about 70 people sign up last year but we're hoping for more this time," Oakes said. The event is open to runners, walkers and strollers, and will include music from Bill Ecret. For more information about the Dollar Dash, please call 509-793-2006.

Editor's note: This article first appeared in the Aug. 1 edition of the Columbia Basin Herald.