Albany Area Primary Health Care Drive-Thru Health Fair free for public Oct. 5

ALBANY – Albany Area Primary Health Care will offer free health screenings and COVID-19 vaccines Oct. 5 during its 11th annual Drive-Thru Health Fair.

The event is free and open to the community and will run from 8 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Exchange Club Fairgrounds at 810 S. Westover Blvd.

Attendees will have access to free blood pressure, glucose and vision checks; HIV/AIDS screenings, and COVID-19 vaccines. Flu shots will be administered by the DPH and will be available for those with an insurance card. On top of screenings, the event will have more than 20 community resource vendors, raffle prizes, giveaways and performances from DJ Dollar Bill.

In past years, more than 300 community members have attended the annual health fair.

“The entire community is welcome to attend and take advantage of all of the activities and free health screenings,” Joycelyn Yates, chief quality officer with AAPHC, said. “Taking care of your health is so important, and AAPHC is here to care for our community.

Albany has a high blood pressure rate of 41.3% and is one of the U.S. cities with the highest rates of hypertension, according to data pulled from the CDC. Hypertension is a medical condition that occurs when pressure in blood vessels is consistently higher than normal.

In 2023, the Georgia DPH reported that about 12% of Georgians have a diabetes diagnosis, and an additional 230,000 people have diabetes but are unaware

One in seven people living with HIV in the U.S. is unaware that he or she has it, according to the CDC, which recommends getting tested for HIV as part of routine health care.

In Georgia, there were 59,422 people living with HIV in 2021, according to data collected by AIDSVu. According to the same site, southwest Georgia counties have some of the highest rates in the state. Dougherty County had a rate of about 80 people living with HIV per 1,000 in 2021; however, this number may be inflated with the Dougherty jail population.

As fall approaches and the seasons begin changing, flu season is quickly approaching. Given that fact, AAPHC is launching a community awareness campaign focusing on the importance of flu shots.

“It’s critical that our community members get their annual flu shots as soon as possible,” Yates said. “By getting your flu shot, you ensure you have the most protection for the upcoming flu season.”

AAPHC providers are hoping to see flu shot rates improve across the region, especially to avoid a possible COVID-Influenza double pandemic this fall.

The current predominant strain of COVID has cold- or flu-like symptoms. For the week ending Sept. 14, 2.3% of all deaths in the U.S. were due to COVID-19. The CDC recommends that everyone 6 months or older gets a COVID vaccine, especially those with underlying health conditions.

“We want to avoid having major flu and COVID outbreaks hitting our community all at once,” Yates said.

Yates called the Drive-Thru Health Fair a perfect opportunity to take advantage of access to both flu and COVID shots.

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