Health and Wellness Fairs

September 2013

Health and Wellness Fairs

A Resource for Local Leaders

Introduction

Recently, there has been a demand for and growth of a number of workshops/fairs that address Senior's quality as well as quantity of life. This document addresses these changes. It is a "starting point" that will give the user enough material to begin to organize and run a Fair, from a wide variety of sources,addressing the needs/wants of their local District. It synthesizes the best models shared with usfrom across the province, and our research, and is presented here in hopes that Districts and others will use it, customize it, and share it.

Fair

There are a number of different approaches to organizing a Fair: in fact even the definition of a "Health and Wellness Fair" is open to interpretation. Thus, the first thing that must be done is to determine the approach that your District will take.

#1A "Variety Fair"; a compilation of a series of booths/presentations, all of which have a focus on the Health/Wellness themesas your group wishes to define them.

This can be:

• organized around a large central place, such as a gym, having a large number of static booths, with a Q & A's and demos at each one;

• a series of smaller more intimate rooms, which are more discussion/activity based (e.g. blood testing);

• or can be done as a combination of the two.(This will appeal to a wider audience. It can be much larger, but more difficult to organize. However, it is easier to get the cooperation of many non-profit and government groups with this approach.)

#2.A "Thematic Fair";focussed around one theme. This theme may be stressed with one, two, or a small series of speakers/presentations, organized as a conference. Some Districts have offered a fair each year, with a different theme. This tends to be easier to organize, but unless the speaker is high-profile, tends to be much smaller.

#3An "Activity Fair"; organized around a specific active session(s)which the District is concentrating upon: e.g. physical fitness, an intellectual topic, alternate health products, or a craft.

#4A "Sharing Fair"; with various outside groups attending. This will partially be affected by the number of people that you may wish to have participate in your fair, and also if you are going to open your fair tothe general public, senior(s) group (for RTO public relations or other purposes) or restrict it to RTO/ERO members only.

#5A "Travel Fair"; with a series of travel logs presented by RTO members. This can be combined with other themes, and will definitely help your numbers. Merit Travel will love to come, and will help with door prizes.

TO GET STARTED LIST:

1. Form a committee....and share the workload... this will be too hard to do alone. Depending on the type and extent of the fair, many meetings may be required.

1. Get support and direction ($, etc.) from District.

1. Choose the type of Fair you wish to run, and agree on any particular theme(s).

1. Find a location/choose date.

1. Begin contacting your presenters/vendors (see attached model letter).Government agencies seem to need more time. Ask any for-profit groups to give a door prize and pay a table fee.

1. Begin advertising/communication with attendees asap (this is perhaps the hardest, but most important). Can their attendance be confirmed??? Posters?? Registration??

1. Attend to details of event (e.g. food services, room allotment, assessable entrance, projector availability, power cords, door prizes, preparing an RTO display board, etc.)

1. Last minute details!... set-up evaluation form for presenters and participants ...... then enjoy!

APPENDICIES

1. Health Fair Topics/Groups

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Acupuncturist

Asthma

Alternate Wellness Approaches

Alzheimer Society

Arthritis Soc

Assisted Living

Breast Cancer

Cancer Society

Chiropractor

Community Care

Community Care Access Centre

Diabetes Network

Elder Abuse Network

Foot Care/Podiatry

Health Food supplier

Hospice Hearth Place (Cancer support)

Johnson Inc. for RTO/ERO’s Insurance

Kidney Foundation Heart and Stroke

Listen-Up Hearing Centre

Long Term Care Living

Massage Therapist

Natural Supplements supplier

Nursing Homes

Pharmacist(2-3)

Pole Walking

Police Safety Tips/Scams

Prostate Cancer Canada

Reflexologist

Reiki

Senior Recreation Centres

Senior Services for city/town

Seniors Secretariat

Service Canada/Ontario

Shi-atsu

Shoppers Drug Mart (Seniors appliances)

Wellness Products

Yoga for Seniors

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1. Wellness Topics (sample)

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Acupuncture

Aquafit

Arthritis

Birthday Cakes

Bow Making

Bridge

Card Making

Chair Yoga

Community Players

Computer skills

Crocheting

Crokinole

Dancing – ballroom, new age, etc

De-cluttering

Downsizing

Dress with Style

Estate Planning

Euchre

Exercising for health

Exotic Travel

Grand-parenting

Healthy Eating

Hiking

Income Tax

Kayaking/Canoeing

Knitting

Model Railroading

Nature Trails

Painting with acrylics

Personal Security

Photography

Pole Walking

Powers of Attorney

Scrapbooking

Stain Glass

Storing Photos

Swift

Tai Chi

Texting

Travel Tips

Weaving

Wills

Wines/ Wine Making

Woodcarving

Wreath Making

Zoomba

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1. Travel Fair (possible) Topics

Merit Travel

Slides, Q&A, displays and a short write-up about travel destinations from around the world

Safety and travel as we age

Types of travel: Advantages and disadvantages

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Art Tours

Cruising

Driving

Eco Tours

Flying in

Genealogical Research Travel

Hotelling

RVing

Theatre Tours

Wine Tours

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1. RESOURCE DIRECTORY – IMPORTANT NUMBERS

Community
Supports / Local
Number / National/
Provincial
Number / Web Site
ALL EMERGENCIES 911
Active Living Coalition for Older Adults / 1.800.549.9799 /
Alzheimer Society
Canada

• Provincial Societies

/

Arthritis Society of Ontario / 1.800.321.1433 /
Canadian Anti-Fraud Centre (Phonebusters/Seniorbusters Anti-Fraud) / 1.888.495-8501 /
Canadian Cancer Society

• Cancer Centre Regional
• Cancer support Hospice

/ 1.800.668.7830 /
Canadian Crime Stoppers / 1-800-222-8477 /
Canadian Diabetes Association / 1.800.226.8464 /
Canadian Hearing Society / 1.800.312.3848 /
Canadian Lung Association
Ontario Lung Association
British Columbia Lung Association / 1.888.566.5864
1.888.344.5864
1.800.665.5864 /


Canadian Mental Health Association / 1.613.745.7750 /
Canadian Medic Alert Foundation / 1.800.668.1507 /
Canadian National Institute for the Blind / 1.800.563.2642 /
Canadian Red Cross Society / 613.740.1900 /
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH) / 1-800-463-6273 /
Community Care Access Centre / English
310.CCAC (2222)
French
310.CASC (2272 /
Distress Centres Ontario / 416.486.2242 /
EatRight Ontario/Ask a Dietitian / 1.877.510.5102 /
Falls Prevention - Health Canada / 1.613.952.7606
Health Canada / 1.866.225.0709 /
Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada /
Kidney Foundation of Ontario
Kidney Foundation of British Columbia / 1.800.387.4474
1-800.567-8112 /
Local Health Integration Network / http:/ /
Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada
Ontario Division
British Columbia / 416.922-6065 / 1.800.268.7582
1.800.268.7582
1.800.268.7582 /


Ontario Network for the Prevention of Elder Abuse
(ONPEA)
Seniors Safety Line / 1.866.299.1011
1.866.299.1011 /

Ontario Network of Sexual Assaults/Domestic Violence Treatment Centre / 416.323-6400 /
Osteoporosis Canada / 1.800.463.6842 /
Police – Ontario
(Ontario Provincial Police)
Police – British Columbia
(RCMP Provincial Force) / Emergency 911
Toll Free
1.888.310.1122
(Anywhere in Ontario)
911 or contact your local RCMP detachment /

TeleHealth Ontario / 1.866.797.0000 /

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Financial

Ontario Assistive Devices Program

Tel: Toronto 416.327.8804
Toll-free 1.800.268.6021
TDD/TTY 416.327.4282
TDD/TTY 1.800.387.5559

Ontario Disability Support Program

1.800.722.1196

Ontario Drug Benefit Program (over 65)

1.888.405.0405

Trillium Drug Program (under 65)

1.800.575.5386

British Columbia Personal Supports Program

1.888.818.1211

British Columbia Disability Supports

British Columbia Medical Services Plan

1.800.663.7100

British Columbia Fair Pharmacare Program

1.800.663.7100

Canada Revenue Agency

1.800.959.8281

Pension Support

Canada Pension Plan (CPP); Old Age Security (OAS); Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS)

1.800.277.9914

Ontario Guaranteed Annual Income System (GAINS)

1.800.263.7965

Veterans Affairs Canada

1.866.522.2122 (English)

1.866.555.2022 (French)

GOVERNMENT

Municipal

______

______

______

______

______

Provincial Government

Birth/Death Certificates1.800.461.2156

Seniors Info Line1.888.661.2433

Health Card1.800.664.8988

Service Ontario1.800.267.8097

Seniors Info Line1.888.910.1999

Home, Community and Residential Care

Services for Seniors (Service Ontario Infoline)1.866.532.3161

______

______

Federal Government

Service Canada1.800.622.6232

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