The Pharmaceutical Society of Singapore (PSS) was invited to participate in a community health fair held on the 18th of November 2007 jointly organized by Central Community Development Council and Nanyang Polytechnic.

The crowded scene during the event.

In the beginning, the whole hall was an empty corridor..!

The theme of the event was “Living Healthily in the Golden Years” and the targeted audience was those aged 45 and above. The event started off with a brisk walk, followed by breakfast for the participants and performances by NYP students. Close to 1,000 participants turned up for the event in two different batches.

PSS took part in this event by setting up a health exhibition with posters on topics relevant to the elderly, such as managing heart diseases, diabetes, osteoporosis, menopause, joint health, managing pain, quit smoking and other minor ailments. Pharmacist and pre-reg pharmacists were stationed around the posters to elaborate more on the topics as well as to answer any enquiries the public may have. We also collaborated with several suppliers to provide samplings for the public. The main objectives we hoped to achieve through this event were:

1. To increase awareness of pharmacists as a reliable and accessible source of health information and advice.
2. To contribute in public education on managing their medical conditions, minor ailments and preventive health so as to take charge of their own health.

We managed to generate quite a lot of interest from the start and the crowd was overwhelming as we managed to create a “stampede” into our exhibition room, as the participants were practically grabbing for the free samples! But after this initial “onslaught”, the later crowd was more controlled and manageable. That was when our volunteers were able to engage the public and provide more counseling. Aside from the participants, students from NYP’s nursing and other health-related courses were also attracted to our exhibition. We were approached by other organizations interested in setting up similar events in the future and we were also invited by the organizers to participate again next year.

In conclusion, despite the short time we had to organize this event due to our own Pharmacy Week 2007, we managed to achieve our desired objectives and I would consider this event to be a success! On behalf of our team, I would like to express our gratitude to Watsons for providing a pharmacist and pre-reg pharmacists and also to Guardian for their pre-reg pharmacist and pharmacy executive. Special thanks to these volunteers and our suppliers. This event would not have been possible without you! Thanks and enjoy the pictures.

Loh Yew Meng
Pharmacist
PSS Public Education Committee

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