From Scrubs to Spuds

Upon arriving to our clinical site today at All People’s Fresh Market we were quickly assigned an individualized role in preparation of the bustling opening rush at 10:30 sharp! While the building was no larger than a small gas station, I was quick to notice unlike other food pantries it was packed full to the brim with nutrient dense and non-processed foods like lettuce, eggplant, grapefruit, watermelon, potatoes, peppers, and zucchini.

We were swiftly divided up into teams: registration/welcome team, blood pressure screenings, produce, and assisting in checkout of items. Raegan was eager to assist with registration where she was a great asset!

Raegan Heitzenrater providing smiles, support, and her spanish skills to registration staff!

After opening, market members were quick to greet us with a wide grin. I enjoyed chatting with them as they perused through the produce. Many were thrilled to chatter about how they planned to prepare each dish – sauted, steamed, grilled, air-fried, or thrown together into a stew! It was instantly clear to see the joy this organization brings to the community. In many cultures and families preparing dinner is a source of connection, so it was heartwarming to see families come in together galvanized to cook up nutritious ingredients.

Our clinical instructor Dr. Edwards helped us set up a table for us to perform health screenings, which many patrons took us up on! We were able to provide blood pressure screenings, which we were eager to do after mastering the art of the manual blood pressure earlier this month in lab and clinical. We were also able to provide patrons with children sunglasses which were exceptionally popular given the weather warming up.

Many Ohioans face food insecurity, in fact a shocking 11.5 percent of Ohioans are food insecure with 1.6 million facing hunger, 500,000 of those being children. (What Hunger Looks like in Ohio, 2024). Sustainability goal number 2 is to “end hunger, achieve food security and improve nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture”.  After speaking to a few of the volunteers at the market, I learned that the All People’s Fresh Market, a partner of Mid-Ohio Food Collective, provides fresh produce for any household earning less than 200 percent of the federal poverty guideline.  The market is open 6 days a week and can be accessed by those who qualify once per day.  Staff members said it is not uncommon for the pantry to see up to 400 people come through a day and lines a great distance down the road, making community volunteers pivotal to the mission. The market frequently has other community organizations within the community like South Side Thrive and Project Dawn that serve a similar mission of community based health promotion.

Project Dawn is a local organization that had a representative from OSU providing Naloxene and Fentanyl test strips along with education of how to use these items that can save a life. We enjoyed also learning about the organization South Side Thrive which helps promote healthy living resources, financial/housing stability, and community connection.

Near the end of our clinical day, we were able to take a short break and neandered over to Bake Me Happy, a local gluten free bakery near the market. It was the perfect refreshing snack after a long day of community cares! Reflecting back on our long clinical day, my biggest takeaway is how important improving access to not only food, but nutritious non-processed food can have a big impact on community health and wellbeing.

South Side Thrive!

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