Health Beat: Free health insurance counseling for seniors

• Free health insurance counseling for seniors and other Medicare-eligible residents will be offered from 1:30 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 16, at Mattituck-Laurel Library. The program is sponsored by the Suffolk County Office for the Aging. Call 298-4134 for an appointment.
• Dr. Payaal Mehta will lead a free bariatric seminar, hosted by Peconic Bay Medical Center, from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 18, at East End Hotel Indigo in Riverhead. Dr. Mehta will discuss bariatric surgery and other types of weight-loss procedures and programs. Prospective patients and family members are encouraged to attend. Reservations are required; call 631-726-2669.
• Eastern Long Island Hospital will host a community blood drive in a busmobile in front of the hospital on Thursday, Nov. 11, 8 a.m.-5:15 p.m. Donors must be between ages 16 and 75 or older — 16-year-olds with parental permission; 76 and older with a doctor’s note. You must be in good health and weigh at least 110 pounds. Bring a photo or signature ID. You can’t have had a tattoo within the previous 12 months. Donors will receive a $5 gift certificate for use at the Corner Shop or Greenhouse Grill. Call 477-5100.
• Free health screenings are being offered by local doctors and nurses Saturday, Nov. 13, 9 a.m.-2 p.m. in Mattituck Presbyterian Church’s social hall. Screenings are for blood pressure, blood sugar, vision and dental. Consultations and health education services will also be available. Call 298-4145.
• San Simeon by the Sound Center for Nursing and Rehabilitation will host a free public education seminar on understanding Alzheimer’s disease at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 16, in its adult day care center in Greenport. Dr. Jay Slotkin, San Simeon’s medical director, will provide information on signs and symptoms and principles of treatment. Call 477-2110.
• Utopia Home Care is offering a free caregiver training program at its Riverhead office on Tuesday, Nov. 16. The program runs from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. with training in ambulating a person using a cane or walker; transferring a patient between bed and a wheelchair and toilet; turning and repositioning patients, skin and incontinent care and use of a bedpan and urinal; and use of a Hoyer lift. Call 369-5500.
• The East End Hospice bereavement care team will present a program for adults and children on coping through the holidays on Friday, Nov. 12, 4-5:30 p.m., at Riverhead Free Library. The adult session will be in the lower-level stage room; the children’s session, for those 5 and older, will be in the children’s room. Call 288-8400.
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