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Inflatable bowel travels to Southern Field Days

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Southern Field Days is taking place in Waimumu, celebrating the best of the rural South – and Southern DHB’s National Bowel Screening Programme team is there to share information about bowel health and bowel screening.

A giant inflatable bowel is set up onsite for members of the public to walk through, providing an intimate look at this part of the human body. It is equipped with interactive panels to inform and engage people of all ages.

Southern DHB’s National Bowel Screening Programme Manager, Emma Bell, says the event provides a great opportunity to connect with the Southern region’s rural communities, which can be more challenging to reach than urban communities.

“We work hard to maintain strong participation rates across the region, including among rural residents,” she says. “Our attendance at this event is one of the ways we connect with Southern heartland communities, to ensure residents are aware of the National Bowel Screening Programme and its benefits to individuals, whānau and communities.”

To date, the Southern programme has led to the diagnoses of 145 cancers and more than 1100 cases of polyps, which can become cancerous over time.

The programme team is onsite for all three days of Southern Field Days, which runs from Wednesday 12 to Friday 14 February, from 9.00am to 5.00pm.