Newborn babies at Great Plains Health to celebrate American Heart Month with special handmade red hats
Contact: Megan Hanson
Contact:
Megan Hanson, Marketing Manager
hansonm@gphealth.org
Cell: 402.274.7882
Office: 308.568.7497
Great Plains Health is celebrating American Heart Month by partnering with the American Heart Association for the Little Hats, Big Hearts™ program, which raises awareness of heart disease, the No. 1 killer of Americans, and congenital heart defects, the most common type of birth defect in the country. Through the program, every baby born at Great Plains Health in February will receive a red knitted or crocheted hat handmade by Great Plains Health volunteers and Association volunteers.
"Great Plains Health understands the importance of heart disease and congenital heart defect awareness," said Mel McNea, CEO at Great Plains Health. "An estimated one in 100 babies are born with a heart defect."
This is the third year of the Little Hats, Big Hearts program, which provides hats to newborn babies in 35 states across the country, but the first time Nebraska hospitals are participating. Nearly 2,000 hats were collected from around the state to distribute at 26 hospitals.
For more information on the program, visit the American Heart Association's website at www.heart.org/LittleHatsBigHearts.
American Heart Month is an annual celebration in February that began in 1963 to encourage Americans to join the battle against heart disease. A presidential proclamation pays tribute each year to researchers, physicians, public health professionals and volunteers for their tireless efforts in preventing, treating and researching heart disease. One of the marquee events of American Heart Month is National Wear Red Day, held this year on Friday, Feb. 5.
For more information on Great Plains Health's participation in Little Hats, Big Hearts, please contact Megan Hanson, marketing manager, at hansonm@gphealth.org.