Spot check van parks at Stratford A&P Showgrounds for free spot checks

From left: FMG Taranaki area manager Belinda Mooney, nurse Gill, and Dwayne Schimanski from Farmlands. Photo/ Alyssa Smith

Free spot checks were on offer at the Stratford A&P Showgrounds last week.

The Melanoma New Zealand spot checks van was parked at the Stratford A&P Showgrounds on Wednesday, August 10, with staff on-site to provide free spot checks and raise awareness about the importance of early detection and prevention of melanoma.

FMG area manager for Taranaki Belinda Mooney says they collaborated with Farmlands on the day to provide a barbecue.

"It's calving season, so this is a way we can offer light relief while people are doing something important for themselves."

She says FMG collaborated with Melanoma New Zealand to bring the spot check van all around the country, with the first stop being Taranaki.

"We want to bring it to the rural communities. There is an increased risk with farmers as they are outside a lot of the time, so we want to make the van accessible to them."

Last Tuesday, Belinda says they were at Normanby, where they checked 56 people, and six of those people came back with suspicious spots. Last Thursday, the team were parked in Inglewood.

"We were fully booked over the three days. It shows that there is a need for this in the community, and how people understand the importance of these checks."

She says people didn't need to have a spot they were concerned about to get checked, with people able to get a general check on high-risk areas such as the face, and back of the neck.

Belinda says spot checks are important and can help detect melanoma early.

"Spot checks are a great way to engage in conversation about the importance of early detection, however, they are not a substitute for regular full-body skin checks by your GP or specialist. If caught and treated early enough, melanoma is almost always curable."