Friday, June 8 is a national day of awareness for violence prevention that calls for ending violence in the community and workplace. Sponsored by the American Hospital Association with the hashtag #HAVhope, for hospitals against violence, the event focuses on an education campaign to raise awareness, with hospitals posting photos and messages supporting violence prevention to their social media accounts.

AHA designated Friday for the observance to include the issue in Community Health Improvement Week – a weeklong event organized by the Association for Community Health Improvement. ACHI is an AHA affiliate.

“Each day is dedicated to a certain theme, and they usually try to make Friday’s theme related to hospitals’ efforts to combat violence,” said Samantha Dean, AHA social media specialist.

Other days and themes include community health workers (Wednesday) and vulnerable populations (Thursday).

Hospital staffers can download an #HAVhope toolkit with printable sign to hold in group photos, and are encouraged to use the #HAVhope hashtag to promote violence prevention via Twitter accounts and other social media. Download materials and learn ways to participate here.

“Share a photo on June 8 of yourself holding hands with others in your community or workplace who are also committed to combating violence,” AHA stated on its website. “This collection of photos will provide a visual to demonstrate that we stand together to combat violence.”

Contact:
Jennifer Bayer
(213) 538-0730
jbayer@hasc.org