Stay in Circulation: Stay in Circulation Week : Community Event Ideas

Department of Health and Human Services - National Institutes of Health - National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute

Stay in Circulation: Take Steps to Learn About P.A.D.

Community Outreach Materials | Promotional Materials | Media Outreach Materials

Stay in Circulation Week
Community Event Ideas

Back to Stay in Circulation Week

Roll out Stay in Circulation Week in your community by organizing P.A.D. awareness events during the third week in September. Many of these event ideas are ways to incorporate Stay in Circulation Week into any existing activities your organization has already planned for September. Feel free to tailor any event ideas to best suit the needs of your organization and community. Tactics that may require more advance planning are noted with an asterisk.

You are encouraged to use these ideas beyond Stay in Circulation Week, and you may even come up with additional ways to “stay in circulation” throughout the year. Please share your successes and let us know what your organization is doing by completing and sending back the feedback form [link to feedback form].

Monday: Step Up to the Plate
Your organization and its members are critical to the success of Stay in Circulation. To formally kick-off the campaign, motivate everyone in your organization by holding internal Stay in Circulation events.

Suggested Promotional Materials:

Host a Stay in Circulation rally breakfast on Monday morning to energize everyone. Hand out stickers and T-shirts to everyone in your organization. Talk about the week of activity and encourage involvement.
Encourage everyone in your organization to wear Stay in Circulation T-shirts or a Stay in Circulation sticker all week.
In the weeks leading up to Stay in Circulation Week, send out e-mails to everyone in your organization as well as your members to encourage participation.*
Invite a local patient spokesperson to talk to your organization about life with P.A.D. Let everyone in your organization know how the work they do makes a positive impact on people. Ask your patient spokesperson if he/she would be willing to share their story on your organization’s Web site, or in your newsletter.*
Activate your membership or constituents by sending out a Stay in Circulation package—include T-shirts, stickers, and a list of events for the week.*

Tuesday: Steps to City Hall
Kick off Stay in Circulation Week in your community and demonstrate your organization’s commitment to this issue by creating a presence in your community.

Suggested Promotional Materials:

Send community leaders and local media figures a Stay in Circulation T-shirt or sticker and a letter asking them to show support by wearing the items on the air or to a public event.
Place purple footstep decals in prominent public spaces such as parks, City Hall, public markets, and high-traffic neighborhoods.
Work with the local city and/or county governments to issue a proclamation officially designating your community’s participation in the Stay in Circulation campaign.* (See the sample proclamation in the next section.)
Work with a local partner to offer a free P.A.D. screening for the mayor or other prominent local figures. This can be turned into a news hook to pitch to the local media.* (See the sample media materials in the next section.)

Wednesday: Help Your Patients Stay in Circulation
Health care providers are a credible, powerful source of information for consumers. Here are some suggested ways to work with health care providers who are part of your membership, community, or any other provider-based organizations with whom you may already work.

Suggested Promotional Materials:

Encourage health care providers in your membership (or among your constituents) to participate in Stay in Circulation Week by asking them to:

Have their staff members wear Stay in Circulation stickers or T-shirts in the office to facilitate provider-patient dialogue about P.A.D.
Place purple footstep decals in patient waiting rooms

Partner with a local senior center or community center and offer to host a P.A.D. presentation or information session.*
Work with your local screening program to provide a series of P.A.D. screenings during the month of September.*
Work with local health care providers to host a P.A.D. presentation or information session at a hospital or clinic.*

Thursday: Friends and Family Help You Stay in Circulation
Our friends and family motivate us to want to stay active and independent. Encourage people in your community to talk to their friends and family members about P.A.D.

Suggested Promotional Materials:

At any P.A.D.-related events your organization is holding, provide attendees with note cards and stickers. Ask attendees to write notes to their friends or family members encouraging them to learn more about P.A.D.
Partner with local women’s groups or veteran’s groups and host a P.A.D. information session. Emphasize that P.A.D. can affect everyone, and encourage attendees to bring their friends and family to the event.*

Friday: Step Out on the Town
End the week with a community-wide day of activity to demonstrate how everyone can stay in circulation.

Suggested Promotional Materials:

Organize a “Family Walking Night”—encourage families in your community to take an after-dinner walk together.
Partner with local and state public golf courses in your community to make Stay in Circulation campaign materials available in clubhouses, snack bars, and at club rental desks.
Partner with dance studios in your community to organize an adult Stay in Circulation dance to promote dancing as an effective way to maintain leg health and a fun way to “step out” P.A.D.*
Organize a “Purple Footsteps Evening” or “Purple Footsteps Luncheon” with local restaurants to serve a creative “tasting menu” of heart healthy foods.*

*May require longer planning time.