News Photo by Michael Gonzalez Autumn Madsen, a nursing student at Alpena Community College, performs a blood pressure test on Jared Wyman at the medical tent at the Michigan Brown Trout Festival on Monday.

ALPENA — The Michigan Brown Trout Festival on Monday held its first-ever Medical Monday, an event that allowed multiple Northeast Michigan health care providers a chance to give medical demonstrations and information to the public.

Alpena Community College, the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services, McLaren Home Care, District Health Department No. 4, and Andy Marceau, community risk reduction officer of the Alpena Fire Department, attended the event.

Blood pressure screenings and a crash course on CPR techniques through dummies provided by the Fire Department gave attendees a chance to educate themselves with community providers.

“I think this is a new way to get people to Brown Trout,” Marceau said. “Just like Kid’s Day and the other things that happen throughout the fest’s week, it’s not just about the fish, really. If there’s a chance for people to learn more, that’s a good thing, to me.”

McLaren Home Care of Alpena hoped to draw Brown Trout festival goers to its hospice program. Lori Hilla, a coordinator of volunteers at McLaren, said the organization is short on staff and really needs volunteers to help with hospice.

Pamphlets for hospice, hospice volunteers, palliative care, and other matters were provided at the event.

“The couple right there are actually talking to us about how a relative might need our services soon,” Hilla said while pointing to an older couple at McLaren’s table. “This is a great way for people to hear about these services, and, hopefully, we get some volunteers for Alpena.”

DHHS had information regarding lead safety for northern Michigan families and chemical issues that might be in bodies of water and how that might affect fish.

District Health Department No. 4 offered pamphlets regarding free HIV tests at their facilities and information on the dangers of bed bugs. Health workers of the department talked with attendees of the festival about medical situations they had questions about.

“There’s not that many people here at the moment,” Marceau said as he looked around a slightly populated festival venue. “If we’re allowed to do this next year, we might want to do it later in the evening so we can get more people to learn about what we do.”