Porter Regional Hospital Hosts Women’s Health Seminar

PCH womens-health 040914-1As part of a series of community-focused wellness clinics, Porter Regional Hospital on Wednesday evening hosted a seminar to help teach attendees on various aspects of women’s health.

The presentation was given by Annabel N. Yuen, D.O., who practices out of the Westchester Medical Group in Chesterton. Dr. Yuen’s exhibition centered on some of the important facts and numbers surrounding female health, focusing especially on the illnesses and diseases women face as they age.

PCH womens-health 040914-2“The overall message," Dr. Yuen said, "would be giving helpful information to women to empower them to make healthy lifestyle changes and to help them educate other women in their lives to live healthy, more fulfilling lives.”

Nearly two dozen women (and a few husbands) gathered in the Community Room at the hospital for Dr. Yuen’s presentation, the third that she has participated in as part of the community wellness program.

“I’m one of the newer doctors at Westchester Medical Group, so this is a way to get myself out in the community and get some exposure,” Dr. Yuen said. “It’s also a way to educate our patients as to what’s going on with the current protocols in women’s health.”

PCH womens-health 040914-3The presentation focused on major questions women face as they age. Topics included heart disease, the No. 1 killer in the United States; cancers that traditionally affect women in the United States, with lung cancer taking the top spot from breast cancer; the average age when women start menopause (51.4 years old); and the appropriate ages to begin getting colonoscopies (soon after turning 50) and annual mammograms (40).

“We’ve been doing these types of events for some time, since before we moved into the new hospital,” said Bonny Hildebrand, the community programming coordinator at Porter Regional Hospital. “They’ve been gaining popularity because we’ve been picking good, relevant topics, and absolutely I think it’s been making a difference in educating and making people more aware as healthcare consumers.”

The next wellness event hosted by Porter Regional Hospital will be held on Thursday, April 17, at the Sand Creek Country Club in Chesterton. That presentation will be given by orthopedic surgeons Dr. Thomas Kay and Dr. Michael Leland, and will focus on joint replacement surgery. It will start at 6 p.m.

“The focus at Porter is to be able to give back to the community and educate them on health topics that are appropriate to today’s world,” Hildebrand said. “Women’s health (on Wednesday was) the focus, but we focus on everything from joints to supplements and more.”

The community support for the programs is important in keeping the series running, and Dr. Yuen was happy to see some familiar faces in the crowd on Wednesday evening.

“I think it’s a good way to bring the community together,” Dr. Yuen said. “We usually have a good turnout. I’m seeing a lot of repeats from a few weeks ago, so it’s good to know that people are supportive of these types of events.”