Diversity in the American Heart Association

Diversity in The American Heart Association

By: Erin Chancellor

The American Heart Association works hard to ensure diversity within its organization. They prefer for their organization to reflect their target audience. Because Heart disease can target people from all backgrounds, genders, ages and ethnicities, they work to integrate diversity in every aspect of their organization. The American Heart Association or AHA has a Diversity Advisory Cabinet who oversees ways to change/improve programs so that they can be more diverse. They have other sectors within their organization such as AHA Affinity Groups, Supplier diversity and cultural health initiatives that relate to different gender, racial and ethnic populations.

Currently the AHA is in full swing with their "Go Red for Women" campaign that works to raise awareness of heart disease for women of all backgrounds. Because heart disease can strike women of any background, anywhere, this campaign raises awareness that heart disease is the #1 killer of women. The effort strives to reach women in all racial groups. In fact on their website in the “Red around town” section it states, “while Go Red for women is a national organization, it’s also a powerful grassroots organization, uniting women in diverse neighborhoods from coast to coast”.

The Heart Truth is an aspect of this campaign which brought the Red Dress into the limelight in 2007. The Red Dress is used to represent the image of women and heart disease. Once again on February 13, 2009, the Red Dress made an appearance during New York Fashion Week. Designers such as Diane von Furstenberg were present to show their Red Dress creations in hopes of gaining awareness of the disease.

Macy’s, a national supporter for AHA’s "Go Red for Women" movement, has gotten in on the diversity efforts of the organization. It recently established a “Go Red for Women Multicultural Fund” which is designed to raise awareness of cardiovascular disease for Hispanic women, a population seen as a high risk for cardiovascular disease.