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The announcement on the blood screening in Newport News, VA prompts me to
write this in hopes of encouraging other groups to conduct blood screenings
for the CFCR incidence study. Even if the drawing of the blood is donated,
the cost of shipping the samples a significant distance could be a burden to
a small group with limited resources. I hope our experience would allow other
groups to provide a screening for members and their families.  Bev in
Milwaukee

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The Milwaukee Celiac Sprue Crew had a screening for CFCR in May to help
celebrate our group's 18th Anniversary.  We had to buy techs to draw blood
(program/location considerations), so we decided to asked/suggested a $5
donation per person, $20 family limit, to help defray costs (techs &
shipping, which was considerable from here, etc) for providing the service,
with the excess to go back to CFCR when all everything is wrapped up.

There are a lot of unknowns when planning a screening, the least of which is
wondering how many of the people scheduled will actually come.  Based on our
experience, I would recommend asking for a modest donation as a way to help
guarantee attendance.  We found that those interested enough to send the
money in advance were the ones that showed up for the test. Of the very large
number that paid, there were few no-shows (1-2%). Of the 20 or so who signed
up but didn't prepay, about half were no-shows. Some of those that did
pre-pay brought others with them, money in hand, hoping to be tested, and
they were. (We had extra forms, just in case, but didn't use them.)  Odd as
it may be, the modest charge seemed to give the service more value than
giving it away for free.

We orginally had problems finding insured technicians to draw blood, but the
business office at a local hospital solved our problem.  They referred us to
the service that provides extra staffing for hospital labs, as well as for
health screenings done a drugs stores, health fairs, etc.  These
professionals had a minimun of 3 years experience  and were exceptionally
skilled at using the butterfly needles sent as part of the supplies.  They
actually enjoyed themselves since we supplied willing participants!  Everyone
who attended was awed by their professional competence. Cost per tech was
about $20/hour, but it was worth every cent since they were able to draw (&
probably exceeded) the minium of 12 per hour that CFCR had said to plan for.
We asked that children be older than 5 yrs which also helped things move
faster, although they had the experience working on children.  The
technicians were assisted by RNs, members of the group, who took care of the
necessary paper shuffling. The time was broken into half hour blocks &
everyone had an assigned time. Paperwork was filled out first, after which no
one had to wait over 15 minutes to have their blood drawn. Many familes came
& went in 30 minutes, while others stayed around to look at the displays,
pick up handouts on celiac disease, and sample great g.f. food.

Nothing fancy, no speakers or formal program. Our members were grateful to
have family members tested and we are able to help provide sample to CFCR.
Lots of planning, lots of work but worth all the effort.