Free health screenings were offered to Missouri Southern employees and their spouses.

From 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Feb. 9-10 in the Connor Ballroom of the Billingsly Student Center, campus recreation and wellness held a health and benefit fair. The Freeman Screen Team was there to help the Southern staff and their spouses prevent and possibly detect heart disease, diabetes and osteoporosis.

“We (the Screen Team) are a group of employees from Freeman Hospital that go out into the community to screen and help detect risk factors for heart disease, osteoporosis and diabetes,” said Fran Cloyd, registered nurse from Freeman Hospital. “We also like to aware people of the risk factor.”

There were free services for the staff and also other forms of lab work they could have purchased at the fair. The free health screenings included blood pressure, lipid panel, body fat composition, blood cholesterol, glucose, osteoporosis screen and a prostate cancer screen.

The lab work included complete blood count, basic metabolic panel, comprehensive metabolic panel, A1C, hepatic function, TSH and T4, gout screening (uric acid), homocysteine level and a heath profile.

Southern health promotion students played a part in the fair as well.

“There were 30 health promotion wellness students that helped,” said Darren Fullerton, director of campus recreation wellness. “They took blood pressure and helped with registering.”

This is not the only fair planned for the University.

“This particular fair was held just for the staff, but in the fall we have one or two for the student; particularly during Natural High Week,” Fullerton said.

There were also other local businesses extending their services to benefit the fair. Among them were Delta Dental of Missouri, New York Life, Forrest T. Jones & Co, Valic, Pebsco and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Missouri.