West Lauderdale Students Promote Health Awareness

Top: West Lauderdale High School (WLHS) juniors Ray Pulver (right) and Kinley Cain use dual earpieces to check a community member’s blood pressure as part of a heart health fair hosted by the school’s health science program in partnership with Anderson Regional Medical Center (ARMC) and its Meridian Occupational Health Program. Bottom: Senior Mariah Baylor checks a community member’s blood pressure at the WLHS-hosted heart health fair.

Will Graves

People across the nation wear red each February to raise awareness of cardiovascular health and disease prevention during American Heart Month. In the Lauderdale County School District (LCSD), students from the West Lauderdale High School (WLHS) health science program take a community-driven approach to local health promotion.

The program annually partners with Anderson Regional Medical Center (ARMC) and its Meridian Occupational Health Program in hosting a heart health fair at the school. With heart disease being the leading cause of death in the Mississippi, WLHS health science teachers wanted to give students hands-on experience by conducting simple heart health diagnostics and promoting healthy living through weight and cholesterol management and avoiding tobacco.

Prior to the event, students took an in-depth look at the circulatory system, vital signs and emergency systems. Lessons were designed to give students an immersive understanding of human anatomy and physiology. By using technology, students were able to visualize the heart and its many arteries and vessels, further reinforcing the importance of heart-healthy living to prevent disease.

As a community-driven career and technical education event, students welcomed any community members and school staff to the heart health fair for a screening. The event was student-led, which means these future health professionals experienced every aspect of conducting a health screening and promotion event, such as scheduling appointments, checking blood pressure and testing blood glucose levels.

Through this partnership with ARMC, WLHS health science students are afforded many opportunities to gain valuable real-world experience as healthcare practitioners by shadowing in specialized fields such as nursing, medicine, medical lab and radiology. Through the partnership, students build confidence by putting classroom learning into practice while supporting the community through health promotion.

WLHS junior Micah Reed conducts a blood glucose check during the heart health fair hosted at the school.