Wear Red Day Observed at SUNY Downstate
Feb 8, 2008
Brooklyn, NY - In support of women's heart disease awareness, faculty and staff at SUNY Downstate Medical Center recently dressed in red to celebrate National Wear Red Day. Downstate employees gathered in the lobby of University Hospital of Brooklyn for a group photo to commemorate the life-saving awareness movement.
Although most studies concerning heart disease in the United States have been geared towards men, it is women who are being diagnosed with heart disease and dying at a higher rate than men. In fact, more women die from heart disease each year than from all cancers combined.
“One in every three women have some form of heart disease,” noted Maria Yomtov, MSN, director of the Center for Community Health Promotion and Wellness.
Judith Mitchell, MD, director of SUNY Downstate’s Heart Failure Center and associate professor of medicine at Downstate, added, “50,000 more women die from heart disease than men.”
Downstate’s health professionals organized a health fair, where they administered more than 60 blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol screenings. Downstate employees also staffed information tables providing patients with health education on women’s health, smoking cessation, HIV/AIDS and more. There was also a demonstration of adult CPR.
During the fair, red dress pins and red bracelets were given to participants courtesy of the American Heart Association, while others donated money to help the fight against heart disease.
The fight against heart disease is personal for patient-educator Sarah Marshall, RN, many of whose family members have succumbed to heart disease. “I am an advocate for women’s heart health because my family legacy is connected to heart disease. As a result, I facilitate education and information to family and friends,” said nurse Marshall.
National Wear Red Day promotes unity in the life-saving fight against heart disease. It provides an opportunity for women to raise awareness by showing off their favorite red outfits; many men sport red ties. Thousands of advocates across the city, state and nation wore red to work and pledged donations on February 1, to help the American Heart Association support ongoing research and education about women and heart disease.
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About SUNY Downstate Medical Center
SUNY Downstate Medical Center, founded in 1860, was the first medical school in the United States to bring teaching out of the lecture hall and to the patient’s bedside. A center of innovation and excellence in research and clinical service delivery, SUNY Downstate Medical Center comprises a College of Medicine, College of Nursing, School of Health Professions, a School of Graduate Studies, School of Public Health, University Hospital of Brooklyn, and a multifaceted biotechnology initiative including the Downstate Biotechnology Incubator and BioBAT for early-stage and more mature companies, respectively.
SUNY Downstate ranks twelfth nationally in the number of alumni who are on the faculty of American medical schools. More physicians practicing in New York City have graduated from SUNY Downstate than from any other medical school.