Jill Rogers Barham - Junior League of Little Rock

Be Wise-Immunize!
By Sheena Lewis & Amanda Gibson
T
here has been much (sometimes
heated) debate recently about health
care reform and access to health care.
Some of those most in need of health care
services are children, and the Junior League
of Little Rock, through a community project
called Be Wise Immunize, is playing a
strong role in helping children in need
receive immunizations. Immunizations
are preventative steps that help not only
children, but also the community, remain
healthy. Disease prevention is one of the
integral components of the public’s wellbeing,
and immunizations are a proven way
to control the spread of communicable
diseases. According to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),
even though most children have received
the recommended vaccines by age 2,
there are still many children, adolescents
(and even adults) who are insufficiently
immunized.
To help ensure children in our community
have the opportunity to be immunized
and screened for other health concerns,
the Junior League of Little Rock has
developed a community project called Be
Wise Immunize. This project will provide
a one day health fair scheduled for April 10,
2010. The children who attend the health
fair will receive immunizations, a vision
and hearing screening, dental examinations,
as well as other general medical services.
In the future, the health fair will be held
annually to benefit the children enrolled in
schools that are participants of the League’s
Stuff the Bus project.
“There is a lack of general physicals
received by the children in our Stuff the
Bus schools, the schools that Be Wise
targets,” says Be Wise Immunize Chair
Elect Molly Young. She goes on to say,
“The children do not see doctors because
their parents may not be able to afford
doctor visits. Another problem is that
foreign born children typically are not
immunized.” This factor has an impact
on some of the schools in southwest
Little Rock where there is a significant
Hispanic population. Be Wise Immunize
Chair Jennifer Pierce says, “The push to
get children signed up with ARKids does
not make it to the foreign born children.”
ARKids is Arkansas’ public children’s
26 Interaction l Holiday 2009