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Community Corner

Saturday at the Library! Health Literacy Day with RWJ Medical Students

Take the first steps toward better health during Health Literacy Day at the East Brunswick Public Library.

On Saturday, March 15, from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., medical students from Rutgers-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School will be onsite at the Library for Health Literacy Day. The day is designed to promote health literacy with prospective patients by using living-room language and teach-back strategies. Medical Students will be present at tables to practice communicating with patients, while answering your health related questions so you can gain a better understanding of conditions such as Type 2 Diabetes; heart disease; immunizations; emotional wellness and nutrition. 

Health Literacy Day recognizes the importance literacy plays in healthcare; specifically, in achieving a long and healthy life, shorter recoveries, fewer hospitalizations, and less overall financial stress to the healthcare system.  This demand on patients to play an active role alongside their physician requires literacy skills that include basic reading and comprehension, numeracy skills to understand prescription dosing, and even the need for multilingual information to meet the demands of those whose first language is not English. 

We invite you to take control of your health in the comfort of your own public library with local medical students who will be tomorrow’s doctors. The East Brunswick Public Library’s team of consumer health librarians will also be present to showcase the library’s own health literacy tools. The East Brunswick Public Library is an Affiliate Member of the National Libraries of Medicine and has been recognized by the group as a leader in health literacy on the public front through its Just for the Health of It initiative, which helps people find health information that is tailored just for them.  The Library also has been awarded two major grants from the National Libraries of Medicine and is involved in a partnership with Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital at their Health & Wellness Centers.

For more information, please call 732-390-6767 or go to The Library’s website at http://www.ebpl.org and click on “News & Events.” Follow us on Twitter and Facebook: twitter.com/EBLibrary1, facebook.com/eastbrunswicklibraryPage
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