title: Let's Get Healthy! Health awareness through public participation in an education and research exhibit.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Health information technology (HIT) offers a resource for public empowerment through tailored information.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  Use interactive community health events to improve awareness of chronic disease risk factors while collecting data to improve health.
  
  
  METHODS
  Let's Get Healthy! is an education and research program in which participants visit interactive research stations to learn about their own health (diet, body composition, blood chemistry). HIT enables computerized data collection that presents participants with immediate results and tailored educational feedback. An anonymous wristband number links collected data in a population database. RESULTS AND LESSONS LEARNED: Communities tailor events to meet community health needs with volunteers trained to conduct research. Participants experience being a research participant and contribute to an anonymous population database for both traditional research purposes and open-source community use.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  By integrating HIT with community involvement, health fairs become an interactive method for engaging communities in research and raising health awareness.
authors.affiliation: Oregon Health & Science University, Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology, USA.
authors.forename: Lisa K
authors.initials: LK
authors.lastname: Marriott
authors.forename: William E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Cameron
authors.forename: Jonathan Q
authors.initials: JQ
authors.lastname: Purnell
authors.forename: Stephano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Cetola
authors.forename: Matthew K
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Ito
authors.forename: Craig D
authors.initials: CD
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Kenneth C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Newcomb
authors.forename: Joan A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Randall
authors.forename: Wyatt B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Messenger
authors.forename: Adam C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Lipus
authors.forename: Jackilen
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shannon
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002908:Chronic Disease; D003153:Community Health Services / Q000458:organization & administration*; D055812:Community-Based Participatory Research / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003159:Community-Institutional Relations; D004032:Diet; D005260:Female; D006266:Health Education / Q000458:organization & administration*; D006801:Humans; D007256:Information Systems; D008297:Male; D012106:Research; D012307:Risk Factors; D012308:Risk Management; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors