Government has formally launched three Seniors Wellness Clinics to encourage people over 65 to maintain good health through disease prevention and making lifestyle changes.

The Seniors Wellness Clinics are designed to complement ? not replace ? health care in the private sector.

Health Minister Patrice Minors opened the Central parishes clinic at the Hamilton Health Centre on Victoria Street this week and said the clinics would provide a range of services, including adult immunisations, blood pressure screening and monitoring as well as health screenings and nutrition counselling.

The clinics will also provide referrals for nursing and rehabilitation services and in-home assessments.

The clinics will be held at the Hamilton Health Centre on the second and fourth Wednesday of every month and in St. George's on the first Tuesday and in Somerset on the third Tuesday of every month.

"They are intended to provide prevention services and promote wellness," Mrs. Minors explained. "They are not intended to replace services provided throughout the private sector but are instead designed to complement them."

The clinics will be open from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the designated days. Mrs. Minors revealed the clinics opened last month, adding: "I understand that a number of seniors attended these clinics and that interest is growing.

"Improved access to health care providers and the establishment of these health and wellness clinics should help seniors maintain their health," she added.

"Let me reiterate Government's commitment to maintaining the quality of life for all of the Island's seniors. They remain a central focus of the Ministry of Health and Family Services. We are primarily concerned with ensuring the delivery of quality health care services for all of the Island's seniors."