Filipino American Community Health Expo 2012 Print
Monday, 12 November 2012 11:21

Chicago, IL – October 25, 2012.  The Filipino American Community Health Expo was held on Sunday, October 7, 2012 at an inaugural location in Skokie, Illinois.  The health expo was organized by the Filipino American Community Health Initiative of Chicago (FACHIC) in collaboration with the Northwestern Institute of Health and Technology (NWIHT) and the National Federation of Filipino American Associations in honor of Filipino American History Month.

This health expo offered free health screening exams including basic physicals and glucose, blood pressure, and cholesterol testing to participants of all ages and ethnic groups.  NWIHT nursing students and medical students from the University of Illinois at Chicago Asian Pacific American Medical Student Association volunteered their time to provide these screenings.  Physicians and nurse practitioners from the local Chicago Filipino community also consulted with each participant to review findings.  Community partner Walgreens was on-site to administer free influenza vaccinations and Asian Human Services provided free HIV screening to interested participants.

New to the health expo this year were health-focused workshops. John Paul (JP) Jael of Asian Human Services led a Basic CPR training class with certification offered at the completion of class.  A session on “Healthy Heart, Healthy Families” with promotion of healthy lifestyle modifications among Filipinos was led by Alliance of Filipinos for Immigrant Rights and Empowerment (AFIRE). Joanne Garces, LCSW, spoke on health care power of attorney issues.  She states, "I am proud that I could share this important information with the health fair attendees.  I received good feedback that this was the first time they learned about the Healthcare Power of Attorney document.  Some participants shared personal stories of how this document could help them and their loved ones and they wished they knew the information sooner."  A variety of vendors ranging from home health services to hospice to financial services were on-site to talk with health expo attendees.  Sponsorship included healthy snacks provided by Whole Foods Sauganash and free lab services by Complete Lab Testing.

FACHIC and collaborators are proud to have organized this event and provided valuable resources and information to the community.  The organization was able to distribute information on free medical clinics in the Chicagoland area for those without access to care as well as important preventive information regarding free mammograms and child safety programs.  FACHIC has been a leading organization in planning annual Filipino community health fairs with intent to hold another health expo in the fall of 2013.  If you would like to be involved at a future event as a participant, volunteer, sponsor, or vendor, please call FACHIC at 312-962-7748 or e-mail This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .


The Filipino American Community Health Initiative of Chicago (FACHIC) is a collaborative of community, health professional, and academic leaders united to address Filipino health issues in the Chicago area. The mission of FACHIC is to increase awareness of Filipino health disparities and to implement health interventions and educational programming to improve the health status of the Filipino community. FACHIC is a 501(c)(3) Illinois nonprofit organization.  All programs and services are free and available to all.  For more information, visit http://www.fachic.org.

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