Organizations Offer Array of Health Classes

Here are some of the organizations that offer wellness classes in North County:

THE HEALTH CONCERN

2429 S. Centre City Parkway

Escondido

746-0700

The Health Concern is part of the Palomar Pomerado Health System and has been operating in North County since 1983. The health center offers a variety of educational workshops and lectures, including CPR, stress management and nutrition. Ongoing programs include smoking cessation, weight reduction and a seniors exercise class. A series of child health and safety classes, such as infant CPR and the Heimlich maneuver, are frequently offered.

The center also hosts several health support groups for people who suffer from arthritis, cancer and lung disorders.

A small book and video library is set up in the front office of the center. The materials are available for checkout.

The Health Concern has also established a speakers bureau. Doctors and health practitioners are available by reservation to lecture on health-related topics to community groups and service organizations.

Most of the center’s services are free; however, some programs such as CPR and baby-sitting basics have a nominal fee.

THE WELL BEING

290 N. El Camino Real Encinitas 753-7270 The Well Being of Scripps Memorial Hospital-Encinitas offers education and information services to the community, including health screenings, lectures, classes and fitness programs. The Well Being also carries pamphlets, books and audio-visual materials relating to health and prevention. The storefront facility has a large meeting room and a reception area where visitors can watch health-related video programs.

In addition to classes for medical topics such as first aid, weight control and CPR, The Well Being has dozens of classes that address a wide variety of social, emotional and even leisure-related subjects, from “Caring for Your Aging Parents” to “Landscaping During the Drought.”

The Well Being has been in North County for four years, first in the conference center at Scripps Memorial, then at various sites around the area. It moved last year into its Camino Village Plaza location. It also presents classes in other North County locations, including La Vida Del Mar, at 850 Del Mar Downs Road, and Stagecoach Park on Camino de las Coches in La Costa.

KAISER PERMANENTE

6860-6880 Avenida Encinas Carlsbad 732 N. Broadway Escondido 528-5000 In addition to family practice medical services, Kaiser offers its members hundreds of free health education classes, including a core series of 17 classes on topics such as parenting, cholesterol and weight management, said Chery Woodard, director of member health education.

For the public, Kaiser offers its free Health Phoneservice, which provides capsule discussions of more than 180 health-related topics in English, and more than 80 in Spanish. Topics are accessible by three-digit codes listed on a brochure available by calling 528-6194. The Health Phone number is 528-5400 for touch-tone phones, 528-5859 for rotary phones. Kaiser clinics are under construction in Encinitas, Rancho Bernardo and Vista.

MISSION PARK MEDICAL CLINIC

161 Thunder Drive Vista 631-3150 Mission Park Medical Clinic is a multisite medical group that has been serving North County for more than 30 years. The clinic offers extensive prevention and health education programs, as well as primary and specialized care, said Carol Bond, director of health education.

MallWalkers is the clinic’s most popular program. Participants gather Tuesday and Thursday mornings at Plaza Camino Real in Carlsbad to walk for an hour. Each walker also receives an individualized program, and periodically meets with an exercise physiologist to set new fitness goals. Since the program began in 1986, more than 700 North County residents have taken part.

Mission Park Medical Clinic also sponsors a yearly health and fitness fair, usually held at an area mall. Those who attend the free event can be tested for cholesterol, blood pressure, blood sugar and skin cancer, and get information on weight management, cardiovascular health, diabetes, smoking cessation, exercise and other medical topics from Mission Park physicians, dietitians and other health professionals. A similar event focuses on staying fit at work.

The clinic also offers classes on various health-related subjects, including weight management, diabetes management and prenatal care.

NORTH COUNTY OASIS

North County Fair Escondido Older Adult Service and Information System (OASIS) is a national nonprofit organization for people 60 and older, sponsored by May Co. department stores.

The North County OASIS is co-sponsored by Mercy Hospital, the Area Agency on Aging and the city of Escondido. OASIS has a 2,000-square-foot space on the first floor of the Robinson’s department store at North County Fair and offers more than 70 different cultural and educational classes every year.

“We cover a broad range of topics,” said Donna Pitts, director of the program. “A lot of these are very much like college classes.”

Recent OASIS presentations have included “Heart Disease: Are You at Risk?” “Medication in Older Adults,” “Coping With an Empty Nest” and “Staying Fit After 55.”

Most of the classes are offered at no charge or at a small charge, said Pitts. Membership in OASIS is free, and there are now 1,700 members in the North County group, she said. OASIS is open Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

SHARP REES-STEALY MEDICAL GROUP

16870 W. Bernardo Drive 487-8001 Sharp Rees-Stealy offers a variety of classes, including parenting, weight management, exercise and smoking cessation. Classes are taught by health professionals in the Sharp system, and, except for a comprehensive weight management program, cost between $10 and $50, said Christy McGinnis, director of education programs. Classes are held in the evening in the conference room or in the waiting rooms at the clinic.

BUSINESS HEALTH INSTITUTE

Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla 457-6578 The Business Health Institute offers workplace seminars to its member companies on 68 wellness-related topics.

“We cover just about anything you can think of,” said spokeswoman Laura Pankratz. Topics include diet, substance abuse, aging, women’s health, heart fitness and eyesight. “These are very positive, upbeat presentations,” Pankratz said. Presenters are health professionals from Scripps Memorial.

It costs $200 to join the Business Health Institute, and seminars are free to member organizations.

NORTH COUNTY HEALTH SERVICES

348 Rancheros Drive, San Marcos 471-2100 North County Health Services is a private, nonprofit health care provider that serves primarily Latino and low-income populations. The clinic does not offer classes, but does have an AIDS education and prevention program aimed at Latinos, an AIDS case management program and a perinatal program, said Deborah Drew, director of social services for the clinic.

The clinic also sends health educators out to give presentations at worker encampments and English as a second language classes, she said.