RESUMO
This study was a pilot done through the activities of a health caravan of the Faculty of Medicine, Tanta University in three villages away from Tanta City by about 3-5 Km. in Gharbia Governorate. The study included 24 of the community leaders in the three villages and 30 from the university students named as young helpers. The community leaders and the young helpers were exposed to health education sessions regarding the common health problems in their communities and the young helpers were prepared to disseminate the learned information to their villagers. The study also recorded 1188 patients from those who attended the health caravan seeking medical treatment and/or advice [30.23% of them were males and 67.75% were females]. The main illnesses recorded among them were as follows: gastrointestinal [25.9%] orthopedic [18.9%], skin [8.8%], ophthalmic [8.3%], E.N.T [7.7%], chest [4.5%] and cardiac diseases [4.3%]. Systolic hypertension was recorded among 10.41% of those above 10 years old, diastolic hypertension was recorded among 14.62% and both systolic and diastolic hypertension were diagnosed among 9.82% of them. Community participation was found to be important in facilitating the work of the health team and increasing the efficiency of the services presented. Also, continuous monitoring of the health status of the population and the underlying changeable socioeconomic conditions are important for health promotion of the rural communities