UC, University Hospital Team Up With AHA to Host Heart Health Event

CINCINNATI—The University of Cincinnati (UC), University Hospital and UC Physicians are collaborating with the American Heart Association (AHA) to celebrate National Wear Red Day on Friday, Feb. 6.

This is the first time the three entities have united to raise awareness about the nation’s No. 1 killer: heart disease. 

The day—which is free and open to all UC, University Hospital and UC Physicians employees and students—will feature a full schedule of activities in the atrium of the new CARE/Crawley building on Eden Avenue, in the middle of UC’s Academic Health Center campus, including:

• Free heart health screenings—blood pressure and cholesterol checks—for students, faculty and staff in the CARE/Crawley atrium from 9 a.m. to noon and in the UC Recreation Center lobby from 1 to 4 p.m. These screenings will be conducted by University Hospital and UC Physicians medical staff and College of Nursing students.

• A Go RED Group Photo at 11:45 a.m. for all students, faculty and staff who wear red.

• A brown bag luncheon and talk at noon, “Love Your Heart: The Truth About Women and Heart Disease,” featuring Stephanie Dunlap, MD, a cardiologist with UC Physicians. 

• A presentation for clinical faculty and staff by Mehmet Cilingiroglu, MD, an interventional cardiologist, and Walter Merrill, MD, a cardiac surgeon, featuring Misty Walterman’s case. Walterman is a heart attack survivor who underwent an emergency C-section and triple by-pass surgery at University Hospital.

• A “Who Wears Red Best” contest. Photos can be e-mailed to healthnews@uc.edu. Prizes include:
  • Faculty/staff category—free one-month membership to the UC Recreation Center.

  • Student category—free fitness assessment.

  • Group category—$10 gas cards.

• Registration tables for the AHA’s Mini-Marathon and Heart Walk, scheduled for March 29.

• A free gift for all participants who wear red.

“We are so pleased to be a part of this wonderful opportunity,” adds Thomas Boat, MD, executive associate dean at the UC College of Medicine and chief executive officer of UC Physicians. “We hope that in partnering with the AHA, we can reach out to our community and educate about the reality and the danger of heart disease. If we can raise awareness, we can save lives.”