News Release

September 29, 2005

Contact: Carolyn Pennington, 860-679-4864
e-mail: cpennington@uchc.edu

Celebrate Aging Programs: October 2005

FARMINGTON, CONN. – Celebrate Aging, a free membership program for men and women, age 40 and older, is designed to address the many issues of aging in a positive way and is offering these educational programs in October.

Your Right to Make Health Care Decisions: This presentation will focus on preparing instructions to guide your loved ones, physicians and other healthcare providers about your healthcare wishes if you are unable to make or communicate your treatment decisions. Learn about your legal right as a patient to refuse treatment and the Connecticut law that governs living wills and other types of advance directives. Barbara Blechner, associate professor in the dept. of community medicine at the Health Center will lead the discussion, on Tuesday, October 11, from noon to 1 p.m., in the Onyiuke Dining Room at the UConn Health Center.

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month: October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Dr. Malini Iyer, assistant professor of surgery, will provide prevention and detection strategies to help you avoid the disease. The free seminar is open to the public and will take place on Tuesday, October 11, from 6 to 7 p.m., at the Riverfront Community Center, 300 Welles Street, Glastonbury.

Stem Cells - An Evolving and Promising New Area of Biomedicine: Join us for this discussion with David W. Rowe, M.D., professor in the department of genetics and developmental biology at the UConn Health Center. Learn about stem cells and their application in health and medical research; explore the controversies surrounding the topic of stem cell research and the responsibility of the research and health care community, as well the general public, toward this evolving science. The seminar is open to the public and will be held on Wednesday, October 12, from 1 to 2 p.m. at the Farmington Senior Center, 321 New Britain Ave., Unionville.

Healthy Aging at L’Oreal: Celebrate Aging and L'Oreal Paris have teamed up for a special program designed to provide women and men tips on how to age in a healthy and successful fashion. Geriatrician Lavern Wright, M.D., will offer insightful tips on how to remain healthy as we age. Dayle Haddon, L'Oréal model and author of "The Five Principles of Ageless Living: A Woman's Guide to Lifelong Health, Beauty, and Well-Being" will be available for a book signing and to answer any questions. In addition, L'Oreal will provide free body analysis using the Tanita Body Composition Analyzer/Scale. The scale measures BMI (body mass index), body fat percentage, fat mass, fat-free mass and more. Each analysis takes five minutes, so be sure to arrive early to reserve time for your test! The program will take place on Saturday, October 18, from noon to 2 p.m., at the L’Oreal Paris store at Westfarms Mall in Farmington.

Medicare Part D - Who Pays First?: Join us for an informational session regarding the new Medicare prescription drug benefit (Medicare Part D). Eric Rodko, Regional Manager of the CHOICES Programs for the North Central Area on Aging, will answer your questions on how the new drug benefit will affect Medicare beneficiaries of all incomes and ages especially those that currently have ConnPace, Medicaid, Medigap policies or no current prescription drug coverage. In addition, information on how Medicare Part D will work with other health insurance plans and/or prescription drug coverage will be presented. The program will be held on Wednesday, October 19, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m., in the Henry Low, M.D. Learning Center at the UConn Health Center.

Men's Cooking Classes: This four-week course is designed for men who have little or no cooking experience and who want to take a more active role in the kitchen. You will learn basic cooking skills, how to follow a recipe, be a smart shopper, and how to cook easy, tasty meals. Participants will enjoy the company of other men who are also beginners and will lunch together at the end of each class. This course is geared to men who have lost a spouse, or who have taken on a care giving role. The classes will be held in the kitchen at the Gables of Farmington on Thursday, October 20, 27, Nov. 3, 10, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. The fee for all four classes is $20 and includes food. To register for this course, please call the Farmington Continuing Education office, 860-404-0290. Sponsored by the Gables of Farmington, Farmington Community Services and Celebrate Aging.

Registration for these programs is required as seating is limited. For more information or to register, call Celebrate Aging at 860-679-4900, toll free at 1-866-837-7737 or register by email at celebrateaging@uchc.edu.

UConn Health includes the schools of medicine and dental medicine, the UConn Medical Group, University Dentists, and John Dempsey Hospital. Home to Bioscience Connecticut, UConn Health pursues a mission of providing outstanding health care education in an environment of exemplary patient care, research and public service. More information about UConn Health is available at www.uchc.edu.

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