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Updates on the Development of the NHLBI Women's Heart
Health Awareness Campaign
 FALL/WINTER 2001
Campaign Plan Launched
The NHLBI has moved forward to develop a strategy for
planning a national public education campaign to increase awareness about women
and heart disease and improve prevention and control of heart disease risk
factors. On October 1, 2001, the NHLBI awarded a 3-year comprehensive health
communications support services contract for planning, developing,
implementing, and evaluating the women's heart health awareness campaign.
Key Recommendations
As described in the
Workshop
Summary Report, two key recommendations resulted from the March 2001
Strategy Development Workshop, which will be the foundation for this campaign.
- Develop a multiyear, national public awareness and
regional/local outreach campaign to convey the message that heart disease is
the #1 killer of American women, and that it can be successfully prevented and
treated.
- Lead the campaign implementation in partnership with
national, regional, and community organizations, including:
- Federal agencies, state and local public health
departments
- National women's organizations
- National health organizations, societies, and
foundations
- National professional organizations
- National and local media
Primary Objective of the Campaign
The primary objective of the campaign will be to increase
awareness that heart disease is the number one killer of American women. It
will seek to "put a face on heart health," motivating women to take heart
health seriously and engage in personal action to reduce their risk of heart
disease. A secondary objective is to motivate health professionals to provide
their women patients with clear messages about heart disease prevention and a
high standard of care for the treatment and control of heart disease and its
risk factors.
Campaign Goal
Based on the strong, clear recommendations of the March 2001
Strategy Development Workshop participants, the goal of campaign is to reduce
death and disability in women from cardiovascular disease (CVD) by:
- Increasing awareness and dispelling misinformation about
CVD risk in women.
- Improving the way health professionals detect and treat
CVD risk factors in women by enhancing their utilization of existing scientific
and clinical information.
- Reaching out to minority women, who have an increased
risk of developing CVD, with culturally sensitive heart health messages.
- Motivating communities to use available resources at the
local level.
Target Audiences
The primary target audience for the campaign will be midlife
women, 40–60 years old. Data from the U.S. 2000 census show nearly 44
million women in this age group. Midlife, perimenopause through menopause, is a
time of both physical and emotional changes for women. Moreover, heart disease
risk factors such as obesity, hypertension, diabetes, and high blood
cholesterol often develop during midlife. Therefore, the campaign will focus on
three NHLBI Cardiovascular Health Performance Goals:
| |
#2 |
Detect and Treat Risk Factors |
| |
#3 |
Early Recognition and Treatment of Acute Coronary
Syndromes |
| |
#4 |
Prevent Recurrence and Complications of
Cardiovascular Disease |
As physical changes occur during perimenopause and
menopause, women may be more likely to seek medical attention. So health
professionals have an opportune time to talk to their female patients about
preventing heart disease risk factors and to detect not only risk factors but
also CVD. In addition, this target audience may help the NHLBI spread heart
health messages to their older mothers and younger adolescent or young-adult
daughters.
The target audience will be segmented, with a particular
emphasis on reaching minority women who are at greater risk of developing heart
disease.
The secondary target audience for the campaign will be
health professionals. The campaign will aim to "put a face on heart disease"
for health professionals and improve the way physicians and other health
professionals detect and treat CVD risk factors in women by enhancing their
utilization of existing scientific and clinical information.
Partnership Development
The NHLBI will lead the women's heart health awareness
campaign in partnership with national, regional, and community organizations.
If you have an interest in being a part of this partnership effort, contact
NHLBI's Office of Prevention, Education, and
Control.
Check back for more updates on campaign planning
milestones. |
