The first ever annual WORD Day, “WOrld Young Rheumatic Disease Day” takes place on the 18 March in 2019.
Jointly inaugurated by PReS (www.PRES.EU) and the parent/patient association ENCA (www.ENCA.org), the objectives of this day are to raise parental and professional awareness of these illnesses. Raising awareness of paediatric rheumatic diseases among health care providers will help speed up diagnosis, especially of rarer diseases.
WORD pediatric day is also directed at the wider public, since it is important to raise social awareness to the needs of children with rheumatic illnesses.
Local face-to-face awareness events, hospital websites and educational programs will be aired on both the local and international stage in a range of different countries. Diverse local events will be designed and implemented by local organizing committees in each country, to be run in hospital, universities and public areas (e.g. schools, museums, town centres). These are anticipated to include information stalls, talks and performances given by patients, information and training events for healthcare professionals, ‘peer education’ workshops involving medical student organisations. In particular, WORD day will target doctors who are the first clinicians to come into contact with these patients (e.g. general paediatricians), parents, other health practitioners, educators.
A number of assertive social media campaigns including the patient voice, patient organisations and charities, promotional educational videos, radio and TV interviews with patients and doctors will accompany these events, each directed at a specific audience.
Social media accounts were launched in December 2018 and so far have reached 16,800 Facebook users, and made 15,700 Twitter impressions.
Leaflets and booklets on WORD Day will soon be available through the PRES website.
For more information and to share your ideas please get in touch through the WORD Day email account – worldyoungrheumaticdiseaseday@gmail.com