St. Vincent de Paul asks patients to “brown bag” it for annual event

CINCINNATI - Nov. 12, 2014 - PRLog -- Patients are invited to bring all their prescribed medications in a “brown bag” to the St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy (SVDP) during its annual fall health fair:

Saturday, Nov. 15, 2014, 8:30 a.m. to 12 p.m.
St. Vincent de Paul West End Outreach Center , 1125 Bank St., Cincinnati, Ohio
The event is free and open to the public.

The patient’s brown-bag contents will be reviewed, and they will get updated information and resources about their medicine such as dosage updates, prescription reminders and discount cards.

The St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy is a one-of-a-kind, innovative program that continues to embrace a culture of excellence and innovation on behalf of people who have no way to access medicine.  It is the only charitable pharmacy in Southwest Ohio. Prescriptions are filled free for income-eligible patients.

The University of Cincinnati chapter of the Open School for Health Professions is partnering with SVDP on this event. The partnership emphasizes overall health and wellness of those served by giving low-income and marginalized people access to integrated services.  Each week, Open School students volunteer and assist in SVDP’s free self-management clinic, helping clients set and achieve health-related goals.

UC’s James L. Winkle College of Pharmacy students will assist with the medication reviews and one-on-one counseling.  Students from the colleges of medicine, nursing, dentistry and allied health sciences – supervised by UC faculty – will also conduct health screenings and nutrition assessments for patients, such as blood pressure checks and oral cancer screenings  Other patient advocacy groups such as Script Your Future and the American Diabetes Association will be available during the event.

Script Your Future, is a national effort to raise awareness among consumers, family caregivers and health-care professionals about the importance of medication adherence. Poor adherence results in 125,000 deaths per year. Improving adherence means fewer emergency room visits and hospitalizations, and could save $290 billion in unnecessary health-care costs. For more information, visit: www.scriptyourfuture.org.

About St. Vincent de Paul
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul has been providing innovative, practical emergency assistance to Greater Cincinnati and Hamilton County residents in need for more than140 years. The organization works personally with those in need, regardless of race or creed, to bridge the spiritual, emotional and material gaps in their lives through home visits provided by neighborhood-based volunteer groups, and groundbreaking initiatives like the Charitable Pharmacy as well as a network of nine food pantries and seven thrift stores and donation centers across Cincinnati. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul continues to be a leading community service organization, recently recognized as a Torch Award for Marketplace Ethics winner, a One Award Finalist by The Better Business Bureau (BBB), and as Non-Profit of the Year by The CincinnatiUSA Regional Chamber of Commerce. For more information in Cincinnati visit www.SVDPcincinnati.org.