MedFest Event at UMD Xfinity Center

On January 11th & 12, SOMD held our very first MedFest event at UMD Xfinity Center to help over 200 Prince Georges County Public School (PGCPS) students receive their updated sports medicals! Over both days, we had approximately 15 clinical volunteers from Kennedy Krieger Institute and Johns Hopkins and 40 Adapted Physical Education staff from PGCPS.

MedFest was created to offer the physical exam that all athletes need prior to participating in Special Olympics sports programming. It is sometimes the first exposure these athletes have to medical care.

In many cases, life-threatening conditions have been found and subsequently treated thanks to MedFest. Led by volunteer physicians, nurses, physician assistants, and medical students, the MedFest screening consists of the following stations: medical history, height and weight, blood pressure, cardiology test, musculoskeletal test, orthopedic tests, abdominal evaluation, and a check-out station.

The goals of MedFest include:

• Offer free sports physical and other health examination services to people with intellectual disabilities.
• Recruit new athletes for Special Olympics
• Foster new partnerships between Special
  Olympics and the community. Provide physicians, nurses, and other health care providers with training and specialized
  experience in caring for people with intellectual disabilities