Health Screenings
The POHF is dedicated to providing our local communities with access to preventive healthcare. We partner with community-based organizations to provide access to preventive health screenings. This opens the door for candid dialog based on each individuals risk factors such as family history, age, and pre-existing health conditions. The POHF medical team will identify and administer the appropriate medical screening.Health screenings help medical professionals identify potential health care concerns and often times, are key to diagnosing diseases and conditions early when treatment is less invasive.
Talk to your doctor about which of the tests listed below are right for you and when you should have them. The following recommendations are based on the work of the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force and NIH Institutes.
- Blood Pressure: Have your blood pressure checked at least every 2 years.
- Cholesterol Checks: Women should have their cholesterol checked regularly starting at age 45; men every 5 years beginning at 35. If you smoke, have diabetes, or if heart disease runs in your family, start having your cholesterol checked at age 20.
- Colorectal Cancer Tests: Have a test for colorectal cancer starting at age 50. Your doctor can help you decide which test is right for you.
- Depression: If you’ve felt “down,” sad, or hopeless, and have felt little interest or pleasure in doing things for 2 weeks straight, talk to your doctor about whether he or she can screen you for depression.
- Diabetes Tests: Have a test to screen for diabetes if you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol.
- Mammograms (Women): Have a mammogram every year, starting at age 40.
- Osteoporosis Tests (Women): Have a bone density test at age 65 to screen for osteoporosis (thinning of the bones). If you are between the ages of 60 and 64 and weigh 154 lbs. or less, talk to your doctor about whether you should be tested.
- Pap Smears (Women): Have a Pap smear every 1 to 3 years if you have been sexually active or are older than 21.
- Prostate Cancer Screening (Men): Talk to your doctor about the possible benefits and harms of prostate cancer screening if you are considering having a prostate-specific antigen (PSA) test or digital rectal examination (DRE).
- Sexually Transmitted Diseases: Talk to your doctor to see whether you should be screened for sexually transmitted diseases, such as HIV, and, for women, also Chlamydia.
NOTE: Most authorities recommend that, after age 50, tests should include an annual fasting blood sugar check for diabetes and also the following for early diagnoses and treatments: regular colonoscopy for cancer of the colon, serum prostatic-specific antigen (PSA) for prostate cancer, mammography It’s through these partnerships that our free educational workshops and health screenings have an impact locally, in your community.