How the American Heart Association Used Text Messaging to Educate Hispanics

Heart disease causes 36,000 deaths annually among Hispanics in the United States, and this demographic has a much lower awareness level of heart disease risk factors than the general population. The American Heart Association and University of Southern California Medical Center responded with a campaign to raise awareness, using targeted messaging with information on risk factors, prevention, healthy diets and recommended physical activities.

The campaign features a combination of humor and technology, with voice messages provided by popular comedians Rafael Sigler (Beverly Hills Chihuahua and Ugly Betty) and Bill Santiago (Comedy Central).

Participants sign up by texting the word “CORAZON” or the word “HEART” to 5-2-7-3-3, or by visiting www.ConozcaSuCorazon.org online, to access Pase La Voz audio messages. After opting in, they receive free weekly health messages in Spanish or English via their cell phones.

Key Activities:

Coordinated outreach efforts featuring heart-healthy recommendations via weekly Pase La Voz health messages to a Hispanic audience; in Conozca Su Corazon, volunteers are trained to teach heart-health information to groups within their community.

Results:

Ongoing evaluation as the program progresses.

Industry:

Healthcare

Primary Communications Discipline:

Public Relations

Organizations Involved:

American Heart Association, Conozca Su Corazon, University of Southern California Medical Center

Campaign Dates:

5/26/2009 - 8/26/2009 for sign up; 5/26/2009 - 4/27/2010 for campaign

For More Information:

American Heart Association news release, US Newswire (Dallas) 5/26/09 http://www.prnewswire.com/DisplayReleaseContent.aspx?ACCT=ind_focus.story&STORY
American Heart Association Launches Texting Campaign for Hispanics, Ignite Health Blog, May, 2009 http://www.ignitehealth.blogspot.com/2009/05/american-heart-association-launches.html

Who's Online