Blood Pressure Screenings, Workshops Offered this Summer At Martin's Point Health Care

Screenings offered in Portland and Brunswick;
Workshops offered in Portland, Brunswick and Portsmouth

Martin’s Point Health Care is offering free blood pressure screenings in Portland and Brunswick and an educational workshop on managing high blood pressure this summer at all three sites.

Screenings

The free blood pressure screenings will be held from 10 a.m. to noon July 11, Aug. 8, and Sept. 12 at the Martin’s Point Health Education Center, 331 Veranda Street, in Portland, and July 28 from 1 to 2 p.m. at the Martin’s Point Health Care center on Farley Road in Brunswick near Cook’s Corner.

No registration is required and persons are encouraged to stop by to receive a screening and educational materials.

Workshops

A workshop to help people with high blood pressure has also been scheduled at Martin’s Point Health Care centers in Portland, Brunswick and Portsmouth, N.H.

“Managing Your High Blood Pressure” will cover self-management strategies for diet, stress management, and exercise. In addition, participants will receive their own digital monitor and learn how to monitor their blood pressure at home.

Taught by Senior Health Educator Leigh Kirchner, MPH, CHES, the workshop will be offered in Portland July 20 and July 27 from 11:30 to 1 p.m.; in Brunswick on July 28 from 2 to 4 p.m.; and at the center’s Portsmouth, N.H. site Aug. 3 from 2 to 4 p.m.

Kirchner tells participants in her classes that, “People can often see noticeable reductions in their blood pressure by making a few simple lifestyle changes. They may still have to take blood pressure medication, but lower dosages are usually required for patients that exercise, maintain a healthy weight, and adopt a blood pressure lowering diet. The guidelines for healthy blood pressure have recently been lowered, so that many more people are now considered to be at risk of developing hypertension. Anyone with a BP above 120/80 should make these lifestyle changes now to maintain their blood pressure in a healthy range.”

Registration is required for the workshop, which costs $50 and is open to the public. Call the Martin’s Point Health Education Center at 828-2497 or 1-800-260-6681 to register or for additional information or directions.

(NOTE: The class itself is not open to the media, but if any media are interested in doing a story on the topic, they can contact Martin’s Point staff listed above.)

The Martin's Point Health Education Center offers a variety of resource materials, such as publications and videos, and classes that focus on a host of topics, ranging from weight management and smoking cessation to disease management.

Martin’s Point Health Care is a not-for-profit health care plan administrator and clinical services provider with facilities in Maine, and Portsmouth, N.H. Martin’s Point serves patients with all major health plans in the areas of family practice, internal medicine, pediatrics, surgery, radiology, cardiology, mammography, and other fields. Martin’s Point administers the U.S. Family Health Plan in Maine and New Hampshire. The U.S. Family Health Plan is a TRICARE Prime option offering health care coverage to military retirees and their dependents and to the families of active-duty personnel. For additional information, visit www.martinspoint.org.

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