Brooklyn Borough President

TAKE YOUR MAN TO THE DOCTOR – HE’LL LIVE TO LOVE YOU LONGER!

Photograph by Kathryn Kirk

In photo: Marty looks on as a Brooklynite gets his blood pressure tested during Take Your Man to the Doctor Week.

On September 26, Borough President Marty Markowitz, Deputy Borough President Yvonne Graham, and over a dozen Brooklyn hospitals and health care providers kicked off Take Your Man to the Doctor Week – He’ll Live to Love You Longer. Mobile medical units offered free health screenings throughout the day at Borough Hall, and Marty demonstrated some of the screenings.

“As men we’ve been taught to tough things out and, too often, that means that taking care of ourselves comes last – or never,” said Brooklyn Borough President Marty Markowitz. “I’m no different from most men but, fortunately, my wife Jamie is always looking out for me, including insisting that I go for annual checkups. It is my hope that the Take Your Man to the Doctor campaign will inspire other Brooklyn men to take steps to ensure their own healthy future, and inspire the women who love them to push them in that direction, bearing in mind, of course, that there’s no more persuasive group than Brooklyn’s women!”

Take Your Man to the Doctor – He’ll Live to Love You Longer is a call to action for men of all ages, ethnicities, and social standing to regularly visit a doctor and for the women who love them to help make it happen. There is a huge disparity in doctor visitation between men and women nationwide, and Brooklyn is no exception. According to the 2003 Community Health Survey, an annual survey of 10,000 New Yorkers conducted by the Health Department, in Brooklyn, 31% of men reported not having a personal doctor, versus only 18% of women.

Free screenings for asthma, blood pressure, colorectal cancer, cholesterol, diabetes, dental/oral cancer, depression, glaucoma, hearing, HIV/AIDS, prostate cancer, pulmonary disease, stroke, stress, weight control/obesity and other conditions, along with important health information will be available at all participating hospitals, clinics and physician’s offices during the week of September 26 – October 2. Participating Brooklyn YMCAs will offer guest passes.

Call 718-802-3875 or visit www.brooklyn-usa.org for a complete listing of free health screening services and all participating hospitals, clinics and physician’s offices.