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Camp-Expo Provides Info on Diseases, Health Care

Posted on: Friday, 27 May 2005, 12:00 CDT

Kidney Kamp and Expo, an educational expo offering information on kidney disease, lupus, diabetes, renal failure and guest speakers, will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. June 20-23 at Bishop Byrne High School, 1475 E. Shelby Drive.

The Rose Way Education and Enrichment Project was founded in 2002 to improve the quality of health and health care in the underserved community through education, changing at-risk behavior and community development.

Past events have fed and presented homeless people with information concerning at-risk behavior for kidney disease, presenting dialysis patients with food and supplements to help aid in their renal and renal diabetic health care and establishing People in Crises Need Immediate Care (PICNIC), an ongoing program designed to serve as a learning and teaching aid targeting prediabetes, prerenal and at-risk individuals.

African-Americans experience high rates of cardiovascular disease, blindness, amputations and end-stage renal disease (ESRD), and 10 to 20 percent of all people with diabetes develop kidney disease.

In 2002, statistics reveal approximately 1,000 ESRD patients were age 50-59, 1,200 patients were 60-69 and 1,100 patients were 70-79.

More than 2,000 patients were diagnosed with diabetes and more than 1,500 with hypertension and the highest concentration (more than 200) of ESRD patients reside in Zip Code 38109, followed by 38106 (slightly less than 150).

The organization is looking for sponsors for gift baskets for needy renal and renal diabetic patients and to establish health fairs, screenings and preventive projects to bring awareness and dietary behavior changes, with the long-term goal of opening a facility to house a dietitian and renal RN are planned for 2005.

For more information, call 396-1374.

Source: Commercial Appeal, The

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