The Library Visit That Saved My Life

Editor's Note: Once a month the not-for-profit organization Health Protection and Education Services, sets up shop at the University City Library and provides free health screenings, education and treatment referrals for adults and youth.  
Below is an email I received from a man who benefited from the health screenings, and he asked me to share his story with the readers of University City Patch.

Dear Ms. Lopez,

That (Health Protection and Education Services) is a really great organization. Doctors, nurses, technicians, retired health care professionals, medical students, and nursing students all work together to provide free medical screenings and advice for people who might otherwise have to pay thousands of dollars for similar screenings and advice.

They offer health care to people who may otherwise have none. That is about as dedicated as you can get.

While this organization was mainly set up for the benefit of people with limited financial resources, anyone can benefit from their services. I use myself as an example. I have a health care team which consists of some of the finest doctors in Saint Louis . But until last year none of my doctors specialized in skin related problems. So in June 2010, when I had the opportunity to get a skin cancer screening from a retired plastic surgeon at the University City Library, I took advantage of it.

Lucky thing that I did. He spotted a skin cancer on my face that I had no idea even existed. Six weeks later I had the cancer removed at Saint Mary’s Outpatient Surgery Center . Luckily it was caught early before it caused any problems. And since that time I’ve been getting regular skin examinations.

This past Saturday I returned to the University City Library while the people from Health Protection and Education Services were visiting. I had to tell them in person how my visit to them last year probably saved my life. Not to mention the quality of my life. And since I was there anyway, I went ahead and got a bunch of other tests that were offered.  I don’t want to even hazard a guess what those tests would have cost me if I had to pay for them.

So that’s my take on Health Protection and Education Services. 

Sincerely,

Wayne Rosenthal

Editors’s Note: This column is for University City residents to voice their opinions on happenings in U City. The views expressed are not those of University City Patch nor its editorial staff, and solely reflect those of the author. This content has not been edited other than to fix spelling or grammatical errors.