Healthy Athletes
Healthy Athletes® is a Special Olympics program that provides free health screenings and health education in a fun, welcoming environment with a focus on removing the anxiety people with intellectual disabilities often experience when faced with a visit to a medical professional. Screenings are conducted by Special Olympics certified volunteers health professionals that are called “Clinical Directors” covering 8 most important medical disciplines for people with Intellectual Disabilities.
Fit Feet ( podiatry)
Fit feet offers podiatric screenings to evaluate ankles, feet, lower extremity biomechanics and proper shoe and sock gear to athletes. Foot specialists work with athletes to evaluate problems of the feet, ankles and lower extremity biomechanics.
FUNfitness ( Physical Therapy)
FUNfitness provides athletes the opportunity to be screened for flexibility of hamstring, calf, shoulder rotator and help flexor muscles; functional strength of abdominal, lower extremity and upper extremity muscles, static and dynamic balance and aerobic fitness.
Health Promotion( Health and Well-being)
Health promoton focuses on healthy lovong, healthy lifestyle choices, and nation-specific health issues. It offers screening for bone density, blood pressure and body mass index BMI.
It goals inclue encouraging and enhancing healthy behaviors and improving self-efficacy and self-advocacy.
Healthy hearing ( Audiology)
Healthy hearing provides athletes free hearing screening and other medical services, including ear wax removal, swim molds, hearing aid maintenanace and minor repairs.
MedFest ( Sports Physical)
Offers the physical screenings that all athletes need prior to participating in Special Olympics sports.
Screenings include vitals, height and weight, as well as basic vision, cardiac, neurological, and general health assesments.
Lions Club international Opening Eyes (Vision and Eye Health)
Free vision assessments, prescription eyewear, sunglasses and sports goggles for SO athletes.
Athletes who do not need any corrective lenses receive plano sunglasses.
Special Smiles ( Dentistry)
Special smiles provides athletes comprehensive oral health care information, free dental screenings and instructions on correct brushing and flossing techniques.
Strong minds ( Emotional Wellness):
Developing adaptive coping skills for maintaining emotional wellness under stress.
Healthy Young Athletes
Healthy Young Athletes is a holistic pediatric screening offered to children 2 – 7 years old, with and without Intellectual Disabilities, as an initial offering by Healthy Athletes. The screening is intended to complement a child’s primary care and provides an additional review of the child’s health and development. It is therefore paired with a comprehensive referral and community support strategy that links families with local providers, community services, and education resources for follow-up and continued support. It also serves as an educational experience to increase health and development knowledge amongst parents and caregivers. This is achieved by identifying medical, developmental, and behavioral concerns that parents and caregivers may have about their child and directing them to the appropriate resources.
