Rock Island, IL- Due to scheduling issues, the open enrollment events offered by community health care act experts at Rock Island Public Libraries will now start in the third week of October.

To help people prepare, the Rock Island Main Library will offer a free, drop-in public education event on Thursday, Oct. 10, where members of the public can pick up information about the Affordable Care Act, and learn what they need to know before they enroll. Event details are as follows:

Get Your Questions Answered about the Affordable Care Act Before You Enroll

2:30 to 5:00 pm, Thursday, Oct. 10

Rock Island Main Library 401 19th Street, 2nd Floor Community Room

This will be an informational session only with a Genesis health educator; no enrollment will be available next week. Interested participants may stop in anytime between 2:30 and 5:00 pm.

Starting in third week of October, the Rock Island Public Library will provide space to two community agencies to assist patrons in signing up for health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act. The library is providing space only; all questions will be answered by trained representatives of the participating agencies. The service is available on a walk-in basis. No appointments are necessary.

Rock Island County Health Department counselors will help members of the public sign up for coverage under the Affordable Care Act. Health Department representatives will be available at the Rock Island Southwest Branch library on Tuesday, Oct. 15 from 1:00 pm to 7:00 pm and at the Rock Island Main Library on Friday. Oct. 17, from 9:00 am to 1:00 pm.

Also starting Oct. 15, health insurance navigators from the Enroll Quad Cities project of Genesis Health System will be at the Rock Island Main Library on Tuesday mornings and Thursday afternoons, and at the library's Southwest Branch on Wednesday afternoons. Dates and times include :

Rock Island Main Library

401 19th Street, Rock Island, 2nd Floor rotunda area

·         Tuesdays, Oct. 15, 22 and 28, from 9:00 am to noon

·         Thursdays, Oct. 17, 24 and 31, from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm

Rock Island Southwest Branch Library -9010 Ridgewood Road, Rock Island

Community Room - Wednesdays, Oct. 16, 23 and 30, from noon to 3 pm.

The enrollment period for the Affordable Care Act is Oct. 1, 2013 through March 31, 2014.The weekly drop-in sessions will continue as long as there is adequate demand. For more information, visit www.enrollqc.com or call (563) 421-ENRL (3675) to speak with a Genesis navigator.

Patrons may also use public internet computers at Rock Island Libraries to research their options or sign up for health care coverage themselves through www.healthcare.gov. The State of Illinois has launched its own website for the state insurance marketplace, http://getcoveredillinois.gov/

Illinois residents can also call (866) 311-1119 toll-free to get information. The help line will be available seven days a week, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.

To allow adequate time for completing online forms, the library has extended computer time for patrons with a valid public library card from an area library. Patrons must present a valid library card to receive the full amount of computer time.

Rock Island Library staff can direct patrons to sources of information about the Affordable Care Act, but cannot answer questions about filling out the online application.

For more news about events and services from Rock Island Library, visit the library website at www.rockislandlibrary.org, follow the library on Facebook or Twitter, or call 309-732-7323 (READ).

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Breast Cancer Awareness Month has been one of the most successful campaigns to raise public awareness in recent history. Unfortunately, in terms of successfully reducing breast-cancer mortality, the results have been mixed, which has caused fierce debate among doctors, researchers, non-profit groups and patients.

"Embedded in the message driving the campaign every October includes instruction to women to strongly consider getting screened for breast cancer, which is often asymptomatic during the early stages, in the hopes of finding cancer before it metastasizes," says cancer psychotherapist Dr. Niki Barr, author of "Emotional Wellness, The Other Half of Treating Cancer," (canceremotionalwellbeing.com).

Debate over the efficacy of screenings has arisen as new studies reveal possible shortfalls:  self-examinations haven't been proven effective; younger women experience false positives due to denser breast tissue, as well as missed positives, despite clinical examinations; and recently published studies such as The New England Journal of Medicine's findings on three decades of screening have been mixed, Dr. Barr says.

The latter found that screenings did reduce late-stage cancer rates, to a small extent, but mammograms also drastically increased over-diagnosis and unnecessary treatment,  including surgeries, toxic drugs and an incalculable amount of stress and suffering, she says.

"I think each woman needs to consider screenings on an individual basis. Family history, age and other risk factors should be considered in their decision," Dr. Barr says. "It's equally important to remember that, should you or a loved one be diagnosed with breast cancer, you should care for your emotional well-being as much as you take measures to restore physical well-being."

While doctors, nurses and medical staff tend to your body, you can tend to your mental health with some of these exercises she recommends to her patients:

• "Catch" anxious feelings before they become anxiety. Prevent anxious thoughts from becoming full-blown anxiety by "catching" those feelings before they intensify. If you find anxious thoughts repeating themselves in your mind, take out some index cards and a pen and write them down, one by one, one per card. When you've written them all down, try to identify which one thought started the chain reaction.  Then find the thought that came next. Continue until you have each thought in order. Now, go back to the first thought and write down a new thought that does not make you feel anxious. When the first thought comes to mind, substitute it with the second thought. Continue through the list until you have positive, empowering thoughts for each negative, anxious one.

• Release painful feelings and then let them go: Writing down painful thoughts and feelings through journaling is an excellent way of exorcising them. Some people find rereading what they've written can be helpful, but others hesitate to use this tool for fear someone will find it and read their private thoughts. For those people, Barr suggests an extra measure of release: Shred the pages while focusing on "letting go" of those feelings.

• Give your mind respite by escaping through music and meditation: Music is a tonic for many things: It can help us relax, lift our spirits, provide an escape from anxious thoughts and the here and now. Always have favorite CDs easily accessible so you can escape with music whenever you need to. Meditation CDs are available to help you learn how to meditate and to provide guided imagery for meditation, which is scientifically proven to trigger soothing chemical changes in the brain. Try "Meditation for Beginners" by Jack Kornfield or "Guided Mindfulness Meditation" by Jon Kabat-Zin. Finally, sleep is an absolute must for both physical and emotional health. If you're having trouble sleeping, there are CDs and downloads to help! Try "Sleep Through Insomnia" by KRS Edstrom.

"Having an actual box, with three-dimensional items, gives patients something tangible to use during a confusing time," Dr. Barr says.

About Niki Barr, Ph.D. (@NikiBarrPhD)

Niki Barr, Ph.D. founded a pioneering psychotherapy practice dedicated to working with cancer patients in all stages of the disease, along with their family members, caregivers and friends. In her book, she describes an "emotional wellness toolbox" patients can put together with effective and simple strategies, ready to use at any time, for helping them move forward through cancer. Dr. Barr is a dynamic and popular speaker, sharing her insights with cancer patients and clinicians across the nation.

Focus on improving emergency medical responses in rural Illinois

SPRINGFIELD - September 27, 2013. Lt. Governor Sheila Simon will meet with stakeholders and discuss the ongoing challenges faced by Emergency Medical Services (EMS) personnel in rural communities as host of the upcoming 2013 Illinois EMS Summit in Springfield on Oct. 8. She is encouraging EMS experts and health care providers to register now through next week.

"Bringing together EMS experts and health care professionals from across the state is a terrific way to help ensure first-rate care for the rural residents of Illinois," said Simon. "By creating this important dialogue we can assist rural communities, make our emergency services even better and save lives."

The 2013 Illinois EMS Summit organizers tout the event as an opportunity for EMS providers and other rural stakeholders to come together to examine the conditions of rural EMS in Illinois. Participants will be able to discuss potential solutions for ongoing rural EMS challenges such as recruitment and retention of personnel, continuing education requirements and the misalignment of licensure with national standards.

Lt. Governor Simon is the chair of the Governor's Rural Affairs Council (GRAC). As GRAC chair, Simon is leading efforts to combat a shortage of emergency responders in many parts of the state, encourage additional EMS training, and improve various classifications and standards. GRAC also established an EMS subcommittee to enhance existing emergency response units, reduce ambulance response times in rural Illinois and make recommendations for improvements and enhanced access.

The summit will be held in Room 1105/1106 of Lincoln Land Community College's Trutter Center at 5250 Shepherd Rd., in Springfield. Those interested in participating can register online at www.siumed.edu/cme/tracker.html. The registration rate is $15 per person. The fee includes refreshments, lunch, and summit materials.

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• Genesis Health System has launched a web page www.genesishealth.com/enroll to provide answers to some questions, including the big one, "what's in it for me?'' Guaranteed preventive services and guaranteed benefits are two answers to "What's In It For Me?", even for the bronze plans. And, check out the video at the site.

• There is also an enrollment service line now available.  The number is (563) 421-3675 (ENRL).  If you have questions or want to invite Genesis health insurance navigators to your church, community organization, library, neighborhood block party, call for information.

• Our email address for information, or to set up community enrollment events, is enrollment@genesishealth.com

• Genesis has hired three health insurance navigators funded by grants  from the federal government. The navigators are now going through mandatory federal and state training.  Once they are licensed, they will go out into the community to assist individuals and small businesses in the enrollment process. They will provide unbiased, objective assistance to help individuals find a plan that is right for their health needs and for their financial needs. We hope the navigators will be licensed by the second week of October. We won't be able to have them licensed by Oct. 1.

• We will be working closely with community organizations, some of which have also received grant funding to assist with enrollment.  We are planning a media event with these partners for Tuesday, Oct. 1, the first day of the enrollment period. Put it on your calendar for Tuesday at 2 p.m.

• This is a big project with big goals.  Our No. 1 Genesis goal is to improve the health of the region by providing access to primary care physicians to individuals and families who now do not have that access. Especially for individuals with a chronic condition, a relationship with a primary care physician can help prevent serious complications of the condition requiring hospitalization.