OGDENSBURG -- Claxton-Hepburn Medical Center will join the American Heart Association for the “Go Red for Women Day” 10-year celebration Friday, Feb. 1. The first Friday in February is set aside each year to recognize the progress made in the fight against heart disease in women.

Claxton-Hepburn’s Employee Wellness Team, the Hepburn Health Nuts, is planning activities around the Medical Center for “Go Red for Women Day.” The team’s activities are designed to raise awareness and educate staff, patients and visitors about the dangers of heart disease in women.

All employees are encouraged to wear red and red dress pins will be handed out in the Cornerstone Café along with heart healthy information and table tent cards. The Café will be decked out in red decorations and most food served in the Café that day will be healthier offerings and red.

Additional messaging will be displayed in the Medical Center elevators and on the employee email system.

Heart disease is still the number one killer of women, killing more than all cancers combined.

Heart disease kills more women than men.

One in three women dies of heart disease.

Approximately 42 million women in the U.S. are affected by heart disease.

Ninety percent of women have one or more risk factors for developing heart disease.

Women’s heart disease symptoms are different from men’s and are often hidden or misunderstood.

Only 24 percent of participants in heart-related studies are women.

Since the first National Wear Red Day 10 years ago, tremendous strides have been made in the fight against heart disease in women, including:

· 21% fewer women dying from heart disease

· 23% more women aware that it's their number one health threat

· Publishing of gender-specific results, established differences in symptoms and responses to medications and women-specific guidelines for prevention and treatment

· Legislation to help end gender disparities

For more information about Go Red for Women Day, or heart health services offered at CHMC, call 1-888-908-2462 or visit www.claxtonhepburn.org.