On Thursday, February 20, 2014, leaders from the World Heart Federation (WHF), the American Heart Association, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), and the American College of Cardiology (ACC), came together to highlight the pressing need to cut premature mortality from cardiovascular disease by at least 25 percent by 2025.
Held at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, the successful event drew over 40 people, representing diverse interests and expertise, including policy, healthcare, research, advocacy, and media. The lively panel discussion touched on important issues ranging from current policies in place to address the burden of heart disease in both primary and secondary settings, to strategies to engage with communities on national and global levels, to barriers that are hindering progress in this area. All of the representatives actively “tweeted” about the event through their Twitter accounts to help spur additional dialogue beyond those in the room.
As ABC7/WJLA-TV news reporter and moderator of the panel discussion, Jennifer Donelan, mentioned there are many inspiring initiatives and programs in place to address the burden of heart disease, but there is still more that can be done, and the panelists echoed this sentiment during their remarks. Attendees left the panel with a call to action and were encouraged to serve as advocates and carry the messages with them, and pledge their own commitments to cutting premature mortality from cardiovascular disease.
Photographed from left to right: Sonia Angell, MD, MPH, Chief of the Noncommunicable Disease Unit, Center for Global Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; Johanna Ralston, Chief Executive Officer of the World Heart Federation; Allen J. Taylor, MD, FACC, FAHA, Chief of Cardiology, Medstar Heart Institute at MedStar Washington Hospital Center and MedStar Georgetown University Hospital; and Chair of the FOCUS campaign of the American College of Cardiology; Jennifer Donelan (moderator), ABC7/WJLA-TV news reporter and heart attack survivor; Janet S. Wright, MD, FACC, Executive Director of the Million Hearts® initiative, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services; and Nancy Brown, Chief Executive Officer of the American Heart Association
Photographed here are Johanna Ralston (left) and Jennifer Donelan (right), who are both discussing global and national mobilization efforts to combat heart disease.
Find out more about the event by reading the associated
press release >