Patient First in the Community

For the past four years, Patient First has participated in Bethlehem's Christkindlmarkt, and once again the event did not disappoint. It has become one of our favorite events of the year. This all-day event ran from morning until evening, and it gave us a full day of fun interacting with the huge crowd that came out to enjoy opening weekend.

Christkindlmarkt has been a holiday hit in Bethlehem and the Lehigh Valley for years. In addition to hand-crafted gifts, the market has expanded over the years to include tastes and sounds of the season including German strudel, carols and even a visit from St. Nick. It now commands international attention for its holiday shopping experience and is noted among the top holiday markets in the world. We are thrilled to be included in the lineup of such an outstanding event!

Throughout the day we enjoyed so many great conversations from folks who have visited our centers from all over Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Maryland. It was great to hear all of the positive comments from many people who went out of their way to show us the love. Our Lehigh Valley centers in Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton naturally got the most love from locals who stopped by to visit with us.

Each year this event features lots of holiday attractions like ice carving, decorated holiday trees and jumbo ornaments, and of course lots of shopping and great eating. It takes place weekends up until Christmas. We were there on Saturday, 11/16/24 for Opening Weekend and the beginning of the event's 31st anniversary year. 

A visit to Christkindlmarkt most definitely puts everyone in the holiday spirit! How many days until we return in 2025?

On Saturday, November 23rd, Patient First joined Johns Hopkins Medicine at their 30th annual symposium, A Woman's Journey. A series of lectures focusing on women's health issues, this year's conference drew in excess of 1,000 women in attendance.

Patient First was the only non-Hopkins affiliated organization in attendance, and we were made to feel very welcome. Speaking with attendees in between conference sessions, most had been patients from our Lutherville-Timonium center, and had nothing but glowing things to say about the care they received there. We also spoke with people from as far south as Waldorf, and Mechanicsburg, PA to the north. The event's chairperson, Kelly Ripken stopped by to thank us for being part of the day, and told us about her own visits to our Lutherville center, as well.  

As this was our first time hosting a table for this symposium in at least four years, we were made to feel very welcome and look forward to attending in 2025.

Tis the season for spreading germs! The holidays are generally considered the season of giving, and that includes germs. And no one does that better than little kids. Recently, a class of kindergartners got a hands-on lesson from Patient First physician, Dr. Trissana Emdadi, M.D., and Director of Medical Support, Michelle Kidd, on the importance of washing their hands amidst the holiday season.

To demonstrate the germs, Dr. Emdadi and Michelle put a little squirt of Glo Germ on each child's hand, and then shined a black light so they could see how many "germs" they had. Then, each child washed their hands, remembering to scrub in between each finger with soap and warm water while singing the "Happy Birthday" song twice through. Afterwards, they shined a black light again to see if the germs had disappeared.

While the Glo Germ may be part magic, it's a great visualization to show where the kids should be focusing on while washing their hands. The ultimate goal, of course, is to cut down on the number of illnesses that typically spread throughout the holiday season and into the cold and flu season.

Patient First offers our handwashing project program to area schools in each of our regions throughout the year, but especially in the colder months. "This time of year, we're getting colds and flus," Emdadi said. "And, I think as we get closer to the holidays, gathering together, our goal is to keep everyone healthy so they can enjoy their holidays together."

Home at Last Dog Rescue based in Lansdale, PA celebrated its 10th annual Howloween 5K and 1 mile Dog Walk this year, and Patient First was fortunate to participate as an event sponsor for the first time this year. We are already eagerly anticipating returning to the 2025 event, and hopefully getting even more engaged with this great organization in the year ahead. It was such a fun time! We were so lucky to score a day of perfect Fall weather, and participants came out in droves -- many in costumes (dogs included) to have fun during this Halloween themed event.

Parkside Place Park in North Wales, PA hosted the event, and it was a perfect location to accommodate such a large and well-attended event. We joined many other vendors and enjoyed a day of interacting with a lot of fun people and their dogs. And yes, we all wanted to take a least one of the adoptable dogs home with us. So many canines of all shapes and sizes and ages were being "shown off" by the foster parents of these fur babies throughout the day.

This organization's hope is to provide an alternative to the purchase of puppy mill and pet store dogs, therefore reducing the demand for and ultimately the supply of such dogs. All of this is accomplished through the support of so many volunteers whose goal is to save the lives of homeless dogs suffering in high kill shelters, as well as owner surrender dogs that need to be rehomed due to unfortunate circumstances.

If you are looking to add a "fur baby" to your household and you're in the Greater Philadelphia area, this is an organization you should check out. We are so excited to have been able to establish a new relationship with the organization this year, and we are looking forward to identifying other ways for us to work together to help these dogs in need, and bring joy into the homes of families who choose to adopt.

On Friday and Saturday, October 25th and 26th, Patient First returned to the campground at Codorus State Park in Hanover, PA to take part in the Codorus Trail of Treats. An event that has become legendary in the region, this two-night, sold-out event brings in families from all around the area, as well as campers who've set up amazing Halloween displays at their camp sites. Each night, 1,500 tickets are sold to families who travel through the campground and interact with the hundreds of camp sites.

This event has always been a particularly fun one for our staff, who can dress up in costume as they hand out our safety blinkers and hand sanitizer. We brought 3,000 blinkers to the event, and went through every single box in our inventory! What makes it even more incredible is that all that happened with the space of three hours each night!

The parents we spoke with came from all over the area-- from Hanover, from York, even from northern Baltimore County. So many people remembered us from our presence there over the past three years, and told us how much they loved the level of care they received from our centers.

This is always a very intense, but very fun pair of evenings that mark the last stretch of our event calendar. It's always a thrill to see the array of costumes and decorations by the thousands, and our staff (a few of them first-timers) say they look forward to being a part of it next year!

Each Fall for the past few years, Patient First has been excited to participate in Apple Days weekend activities hosted by Historic Bethlehem & Sites. The organization has an outstanding volunteer support base which makes things especially nice for us when we're on site, and great for all who attend the event.

We had lots of visits to our tent over the weekend. It is always so nice to hear from people who share with us that they have chosen Patient First as their "go to" urgent care center in the Lehigh Valley.

To keep things running smoothly, event organizers had shuttle busses running from off-site parking areas to accommodate all of the incoming visitors. This was such a nice feature and made access easy and convenient for all.

Most participants who visited with us had great things to say about their experiences as patients in our Lehigh Valley centers -- Allentown, Bethlehem and Easton. We also met with visitors who had been seen by providers in a few of our South Jersey centers, as well.

As usual, the event was "all things apple" with many food and beverage treats to sample. We definitely satisfied our sweet tooth while there by sampling their delicious apple crumb pies and ice cream. How many more days until the 2025 event? We are ready to return.

All eyes were on the skies for the NAS Oceana Air Show! The event, which took place September 21-22, brought together over 100 vendors and 300,000+ spectators for one of the nation's largest military air shows. Locals who've grown accustomed to the motto, "I Love Jet Noise" and those who aren't local, look forward to this event each year as it gives them a rare opportunity to come aboard an active military base and sit right on the flight line to watch their favorite jets, including the F-22 Raptor demonstration team. The event's main draw, however, are the Blue Angels, who travel the country conducting more than 60 shows in a 6-month period. Their precision during death-defying maneuvers is unlike anything you've ever seen before, and Patient First had a front row seat to all the action.

Patient First has been a supporter of this event for many years, as it's one of the few events that offers us the opportunity to connect with our local military. Over the course of the two-day event, we connected with numerous civilians, active and retired military personnel and their families. Like other vendors, we offered airplanes to the kids to help them pass the time while they eagerly awaited the Blue Angels to perform. We connected with several families who were familiar with our services, and others who were new to the area. In all, it was a great event and one we look forward to attending year after year!

The "Spooktacular" Hot Air Balloon Festival in the Lehigh Valley is promoted as the largest Fall, laser-lit hot air balloon, music and glow festival in North American. With 2024 being its fifth anniversary year, Patient First was excited to be a part of the fun for the past two years. This three-day event has quickly become a premiere family entertainment attraction in Pennsylvania, specifically in the Lehigh Valley, and a favorite of ours, as well.

We had so much fun talking with people who traveled from all over Pennsylvania and beyond to the event venue, a small airport in Slatington, PA, not far from our Allentown Patient First center. Of course we enjoyed providing complimentary blood pressure checks as we do with most of our events, but what was particularly exciting for us was to hear accolades we received from so many event participants who had also previously been patients at all of our Lehigh Valley centers, and beyond including Central PA, South Jersey and Maryland.

Our Sunday event staff even got a thrill by hopping in the basket of the Patient First sponsored balloon. Our balloon and many others filled the Lehigh Valley sky with a spectrum of color against the scenic backdrop of the Lehigh Gap. And for those seeking extra thrills, if they stayed on site until dusk on Friday and Saturday nights, organizers put on quite a spectacular laser light show and balloon glow set to music. 

Event organizers were so nice to work with, again this year, and we are already excited about returning in 2025.

On Saturday, September 14, we had the pleasure of participating in one of the most anticipated events by our local community and staff-- the Special Olympics Annual Dulles Plane Pull, held at Dulles International Airport. Now in its 31st year, this incredible event raised $580,000, with 80 teams of up to 25 people competing to see who could pull an 82-ton FedEx or United Boeing 757 airplane 12 feet in the shortest time. Participants lined up along a large rope attached to the aircraft to pull it, creating a thrilling competition. 

In addition to the main event, the Dulles Plane Pull featured a festival with live music, food, vendor games, a car show, military aircraft, and a kid zone where we were stationed, next to the face painting and bouncy house. 

For this event, we had two teams. The first team consisted of 20 center staff members who were eager and excited to pull the plane, while the second team remained at our tent to distribute information and provide blood pressure checks. Our pulling team, although new staff to the event, was full of energy and enthusiasm. When it was our turn, we were introduced as the Patient First team, and we managed to pull the plane in 46 seconds. While it wasn’t the best time, the experience brought us closer together, and we had a blast working as a team. 

Overall, this event was a great success, not only for bringing our staff together, but also for supporting the Special Olympics and connecting with the community. We’re proud to have been a part of this amazing day and can’t wait to return next year! 

For the first time, we proudly sponsored the Leesburg Airshow on September 28th, which took place at the Leesburg Executive Airport. Despite concerns about the hurricane, the weather cooperated, giving us clear skies and warm temperatures. The airshow attracted a large crowd, and it was an exciting experience to witness the aircraft land as we set up. 

Throughout the day, spectators were treated to breathtaking aerobatic performances, including the Flying Circus Jumpers and War Thunder Air Shows. The event also featured a wide variety of modern and antique aircraft on display. One of the highlights was the Douglas C-54 Skymaster, also known as the Spirit of Freedom-- a plane that played a key role in the Berlin Airlift after World War II. Another crowd favorite was the Bell UH-1 Iroquois “Huey” helicopter from the Vietnam War era, showcased by the Liberty Warbirds-- a non-profit based in Lancaster, PA. 

The airshow offered more than just spectacular aerial displays. Attendees enjoyed aviation-related exhibits, educational activities, and a variety of food and beverage vendors. As a free event, it was a fantastic opportunity for the Loudoun County community to come together. 
 

Overall, it was a highly successful event where many people learned about Patient First, and we look forward to returning next year!