What "iheartmom" is really all about

This week, I've introduced you to our iheartmom.ca viral campaign starring Joannie Rochette. I've talked about the evolution of women's heart health as a social marketing issue. I've shared the ups and downs of trying to take a campaign viral. And I talked a bit about the new technologies we're adopting to raise funds.

Today, I'd like to put the spotlight on our cause marketing client, The University of Ottawa Heart Institute. As Canada's top cardiovascular health centre, The Heart Institute is a prime destination for surgeons who teach and conduct research, cardiologists who undertake basic science, investigators who operate clinics, among over 1,000 other health professionals.

Their work is global in scale, including identifying the first major heart health risk factor since cholesterol — the 9p21 gene, unlocking the mechanism controlling a gene that regulates weight loss, and developing a biomaterial that grows new blood vessels.

First Donation / Premier don
Originally uploaded by University of Ottawa Heart Institute

This campaign is gaining great awareness worldwide, but after an initial big cheque, donations are slow coming in. Please join our Facebook cause page or click the "iheartmom" button at the bottom of this post to support research, education, and treatment of women's hearts.

And please send your mom (or grandma, sister, daughter, wife, cousin, friend, etc.) this series of potentially life-saving videos produced by The Heart Institute. Each one has an important health tip for women about protecting and maintaining heart health, and especially for recognizing women's unique cardiac danger signals:











(More to come next week!)

Ready to support this cause now? For Mom? join our Facebook page or hit the button.

I heart you, Mom.

The heart of the issue

This week, in support of our iheartmom.ca campaign for women's heart health, I'm going to look at the development of female-specific heart disease awareness as a social marketing initiative.

Heart disease is the #1 killer of women, but has far less mindshare than breast and cervical cancer in the public discussion of women's health.

Why is this? Part of the problem, according to the University of Ottawa Heart Institute, is that women's heart attack symptoms are different (and often less dramatic) than men's. They can be mistaken for an anxiety attack, flu, or general lightheadedness.

You can see the low awareness of women's heart health in this American PSA from two years ago:



And here is a good explanation of women-specific symptoms and issues:



The situation is changing, though, through the World Heart Federation's "Go Red for Women" campaign.



The campaign also gets corporate and celebrity support.



The international outreach is funded by the American Heart Association's "Go Red" movement, around Valentine's Day and Heart Month.



Here in Canada, the Red Dress campaign recently took the form of The Heart Truth Fashion Show, by the Heart & Stroke Foundation.


(Photo from Contact Music)

Hey, that model looks familiar.



Oh, yeah. It's Joannie Rochette.

Please support, and spread the word about, women's heart health. Visit iheartmom.ca

iheartmom.ca

Canadian figure skater Joannie Rochette won a bronze medal at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics, but her time on the podium was shadowed by tragedy. Just two days before she competed, her mother Therese died of a heart attack.

Joannie not only went on, but achieved a career best. Now, she has committed herself to raising awareness and funds to fight heart disease in women:



We at Acart are also committed to this cause. Just two weeks ago, the University of Ottawa Heart Institute came to us with their idea for creating a Mother's Day campaign around Joannie's involvement in their cause. And so, in a flurry of strategy, creative development, and on-the-fly production, we managed to put together the "iheartmom" campaign — filming the PSA on-site at the Heart Institute while Joannie was in Ottawa for a brief visit.



The online PSA leads to the campaign site, iheartmom.ca, where people are encouraged to donate directly or raise funds via Facebook (there's also a contest element where you can win a Caribbean cruise!)

Some facts on heart disease in women

• Heart disease is the #1 killer of women aged 55 or older
• Women of all ages represent 50% of heart disease deaths in Canada
• In 2005, more than 25,000 Canadian women died from heart disease
• More than one-third of women aged 45 and over have high blood pressure
• Heart disease risk in women increases with age and the onset of menopause
• Heart attack is not uncommon in women in their 30s
• Women’s heart attack symptoms can include unusual fatigue, trouble sleeping, indigestion and anxiety up to one month before a heart attack

The French campaign, "mamandemoncoeur", is running in parallel.



There's also a video of the press conference here.

Please help us help Joannie help moms everywhere have healthier hearts. Share this blog.