STEPHENVILLE, Texas - Harris Methodist Erath County Hospital will offer low-cost cholesterol screenings from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m. on Sept. 9.

The event will be held in the Belknap Lobby at Harris Methodist Erath County Hospital. Proceeds will benefit the 2009 Stephenville High School Project Graduation.

High school students and their parents will help individuals fill out the appropriate paperwork for the screenings and hospital employees will complete the screenings.

Cholesterol screenings will be $5. A lipid profile, which is a breakdown of good and bad cholesterol levels, is $10. Tests for thyroids and prostates are $10 each.

A complete profile, which includes the lipid profile, but not the thyroid or prostate tests, will cost $35. Fasting after midnight is required to achieve accurate results. No appointment is required.

Participants will have their lab results mailed to them. They can then be taken to a primary care doctor for follow-up treatment, if needed.

'Individuals should consider having screenings even if they feel healthy,' said Dr. Alisa Peterson, a hospitalist at Harris Methodist Erath County Hospital. 'Screenings help physicians to identify thyroid or prostate disease early and follow risk factors for cardiovascular disease so that they can offer better preventive care and treat disease early before complications develop.'

The National Cholesterol Education Program Panel recommends that everyone age 20 or older have a fasting blood test every five years.

For more information, call 254-965-1518.

About Harris Methodist Erath County Hospital
Harris Methodist Erath County Hospital is a 98-bed community hospital that provides health care for residents in Erath and the surrounding counties. As one of 13 hospitals in the Texas Health Resources system, Harris Methodist Erath County Hospital offers the compassion, respect, and commitment nurtured by one of the largest faith-based nonprofit hospital systems in the United States.

About Texas Health Resources
Texas Health Resources is one of the largest faith-based, nonprofit health care delivery systems in the United States and the largest in North Texas in terms of patients served. THR's system of 13 hospitals includes Harris Methodist Hospitals, Arlington Memorial Hospital and Presbyterian Healthcare System, and a medical research organization. THR is a corporate member or partner in six additional hospitals and surgery centers. For more information about Texas Health Resources, visit www.texashealth.org.