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By Ginny Hollingsworth, Pensacola News Journal
September 9, 2015

Epilepsy Foundation of Florida 

The Epilepsy Foundation of Florida provides navigation assistance for the Affordable Care Act. While open enrollment 2016 does not start until Nov. 1, certain circumstances such as marriage, divorce, birth of a child, loss of job-based coverage, or other life events, may qualify consumers for a special enrollment period. Personalized assistance with the Epilepsy Foundation of Florida is open to the public and you do not need to be diagnosed with epilepsy to use their services. Call (877) 553-7453 for assistance and appointments.

Life Line screenings 

Residents in the Pensacola area can learn about their risk for cardiovascular disease, osteoporosis, and diabetes as well as other health conditions, with Life Line screenings. The event will be Tuesday at Northridge Church, 2075 E. Nine Mile Road in Pensacola. There will also be Life Screenings for residents in the Gulf Breeze area on Sept. 17 at Gulf Breeze United Methodist Church Community Life Center at 4115 Soundside Drive in Gulf Breeze.

Screenings are convenient and accessible for wheelchairs and for those who have trouble walking. Free parking is available. Screening packages start at $149, but consultants can create a package that is right for the individual based on age and risk factors. Registration is required, call 877-237-1287 or visit www.lifelinescreening.com.

National mental illness awareness walk

The National Alliance on Mental Illness invites the community to participate in a local walk to show support from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Oct. 10 at Bayview Park Community Center. Entry forms are available at eLakeviewCenter.org. Print, complete and mail the form with payment to: NAMI, P.O. Box 18124, Pensacola, FL 32523. The entry fee is $25 payable by check or money order. Registration is available until the day of the walk, but to guarantee a T-shirt, participants must register by Sept. 18. Details, call Bill Crawford, 436-4958, or Jane Cartwright, 637-7377.

Bloodmobile locations 

There is an increased need for type B Negative and A Negative. Platelets, which are critical for cancer patients, last for only five days so there is a constant need for donors. The OneBlood bloodmobile will be at the following locations:

•9 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. today, Booker T. Washington High School, 6000 College Blvd.

•9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday, Santa Rosa Correctional Institution, 5850 E. Milton Road, Milton.

•10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Friday, Pensacola Naval Hospital, 6000 West U.S. 98.

•Noon to 2:30 p.m. Sunday, Highland Baptist Church, 6240 N. Highway 95A, Molino.

•8 to 11 a.m. Sunday, Aldersgate United Methodist Church, 6915 North U.S. 29, Molino.

•2 to 6 p.m. Monday, Pruitt Health, 5530 Northrop Road, Milton.

•12:30 to 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Wayne Dalton, 3395 Addison Drive.

•10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Department of Children and Family Services, 33 Brent Lane, Suite 103.

Donors must be at least 16 years of age with parental consent, weigh at least 110 pounds, be in good health and have a picture ID. Each donor will receive a wellness checkup of blood pressure, pulse, temperature, iron count, and a cholesterol screening. For more information, contact Betty Roberts, 572-4136, 473-3853 or betty.roberts@oneblood.org; visit a Pensacola Blood Drive Center, 2209 N. Ninth Ave., or 1999 E. Nine Mile Road; or visit www.oneblood.org.

Mobile mammography unit locations 

West Florida Hospital’s Mobile Mammography Unit will be at the following locations to offer convenient, high-quality mammography services for women ages 35 and older.

•8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1 to 3:30 p.m. today, West Florida Medical Group, 1190 E. Nine Mile Road.

•7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1 to 3:30 p.m. Tuesday, CVS Pharmacy, 6501 Caroline St., Milton.

•8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. and 1 to 3:30 p.m. Wednesday, West Florida Medical Group, 321 S. Fairfield Drive.

The Mobile Mammography Unit provides comprehensive mammography services that feature an all-female staff of nationally certified and licensed technologists. West Florida Hospital files most insurances, including Medicare. Call 494-3497, or toll-free (888)894-2113 for details.

Sacred Heart to provide free screenings, flu shots 

Sacred Heart Health System will provide free heart-health screenings in Pensacola for adults who are poor, elderly or uninsured. Heart-health screenings will measure blood pressure, blood sugar and total cholesterol, and can detect anemia. The screenings are helpful in diagnosing conditions that put people at high risk for heart attack, stroke, diabetes and other health problems.

•9 to 11:30 a.m. Tuesday at Bayview Senior Center, 2000 E. Lloyd St. Heart-health screenings.

For information about Sacred Heart’s “Mission in Motion” community-health screenings, call 416-7826.

Compiled by Ginny Hollingsworth, health@pnj.com