WORLD HEART DAY 2010

The reason for World Heart Day is simple: Inform people around the globe that heart disease and stroke are the leading cause of death and raise awareness on preventive measures.

We at Kenyan-Heart have taken up the heart fight against Rheumatic Heart Disease, which is a preventable condition, primarily affecting children between the ages of 5 and 15. Kenyan-Heart wants to educate every Kenyan on the symptoms and preventive measures required to completely eradicate Rheumatic Heart Disease in Kenya and the world.

Kenyan-Heart National Foundation celebrated World Heart Day 2010, on Saturday 25th September. This event has been held in Kenya for the past 5 years - starting off with just 10 participating schools and now boasting of over 90 participating schools.

PREPARATION FOR WORLD HEART DAY 2010

MEDIA

Utilized all the Major Electronic & Social Media Channels to spread the WHD-2010 message:

• 30sec TV and Radio commercials were developed and media sponsorship sought to flight the ads. Ads were aired on:
  • KTN – one of the leading TV stations in Kenya
  • Family TV
  • Capital FM including an interview with Kenyan-Heart CEO
  • Radio 316 
  • Hope FM
• Launched a Facebook page that has in just 4 weeks seen over 7,000 fans join and actively interact with Kenyan-Heart and the WHD message
• Refreshed the Kenyan-Heart website with a new landing page that raised awareness on World Heart Day.

T-SHIRTS

ALL our over 5,000 World Heart Day T-shirts had the theme of WHD-2010 printed on them i.e. “I WORK WITH HEART”. They were distributed to schools and individuals at a cost as a fund raising and awareness initiative.

GUESTS OF HONOUR 

The Chief Guest was a representative from the Ministry of Public Health & Sanitation, Division of NCDs, Mr. Edward Ndungu. His message dealt on the rise of heart diseases & their prevention measures based on the WHF Press Release Message. He commended the successful ongoing collaboration between Kenyan-Heart & the Ministry of Public Health & Sanitation as an important stakeholder & advocate of Heart Disease Prevention initiatives.

The Other Guest of Honour was the Chief Advisor to Schools, Mrs. Tabitha Kamau, who represented the Ministry of Education, Department of City Education. She highly commended the great work Kenyan-Heart is doing of educating the masses & the very important Program of Heart Disease Prevention that Kenyan-Heart is running in Schools for students & Teachers. She witnessed with appreciation the overwhelming support the Schools have given Kenyan-Heart in return. She encouraged Kenyan-Heart to continue with the Heart Disease Prevention messages because there was need for this education considering that there were two Rheumatic Heart Disease patients present & knew of others who could not make it.

CORPORATE SPONSORSHIP

Kenyan-Heart received generous Sponsorships from:

• Equity Bank
• Kenya Commercial Bank
• Family TV
• Capital FM

WORLD HEART DAY CELEBRATIONS

The World Heart Day-2010 was celebrated at The Splash WaterWorld with over 5000 children plus adults in attendance and what a day they had! They enjoyed:

• A 5KM walk/run
• Water slides
• Jumping Castles
• Horse riding and Camel rides
• Acrobats
• School performances
• Dancing Competitions

Kenyan-Heart also awarded medals and trophies to:

• Fastest runners - male and female
• Highest fund raising school
• Highest fund raising student
• Highest fund raising teacher
• Certificates to all participating schools

Also in attendance were two young children who have been affected by Rheumatic Heart Disease. They graciously spoke with other children and helped Kenyan-Heart spread the message on heart disease prevention.

The WHD received media coverage on the event day from:

• KBC TV (Kenya Broadcasting Corporation) – The National Broadcaster
• GBS TV (Goodnews Broadcasting System) – A Faith-Based Broadcaster

They both interviewed the Kenyan-Heart CEO and the Ministry of Health representative

All in all, it was a fun-filled day with a message - Having Fun Can Save Lives!

POST-EVENT PUBLICITY

• Interview on KTN Morning Live-Show “SUNRISE” (Elizabeth Gatumia, CEO, Kenyan-Heart National Foundation was invited to discuss Heart Disease Prevention Measures as given for the WHD by WHF.):
  • She articulated comprehensively the WHD Message on CVD Risk Factors ( & Rheumatic Heart Disease) & their Preventive Measures emphasizing the importance of Balanced Diet & Exercise.
  • A Kenyan-Heart Video-Clip developed from the WHD celebrations was played as back-drop to the Interview showing the thousands of children & amp; adults walking & later having lots of fun.
• There were many calls Took phone-ins from general public
• Handed out WHD T-shirts to KTN crew

OTHER TV & RADIO Stations are on Stand-by for POST-WHD INTERVIEWS with the CEO of Kenyan-Heart. These are:

• CITIZEN TV Station – Another Popular Nationwide Media House
• K24 TV Station
• NTV – Very Popular TV Station 
• Kameme Radio Station a very popular vernacular Station.

Report Compiled By the Staff of: Kenyan-Heart National Foundation
Date: Tuesday 4th October 2010.
Click here to view a gallery of the event