Wear red to spread the word on heart health

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This article was published 28/01/2019 (2698 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

There are any number of reasons why someone could wear red.

And as far as Jackie Ratz and Dr. Olga Toleva are concerned, one good reason is a new grassroots campaign called Wear Red Canada.

Held in the spotlight of Heart Month this February, the recently formed Canadian Women’s Heart Health Alliance is holding a series of events across Canada. In Manitoba, in conjunction with the St. Boniface Hospital Foundation, there will be number of events on Feb. 13.

“The idea is to create awareness about women’s heart health and heart disease and how there are symptoms that are specific to women,” said key organizer Jackie Ratz, noting that part of the initiative is to wear red and post a picture with the hashtag #HeartHealthMatters. “The research and education that needs to occur in this area is so important.”

Describing why the event is important to her, Ratz — who lives in River Park South — said the alliance’s parent organization is the University of Ottawa Heart Institute.

“It was one of the first women’s heart health centres in Canada, and it provides a lot of support and research,” she said.

“I do suffer from heart issues, so it’s near and dear to my heart to ensure women are getting the best possible care, especially as women have historically been misdiagnosed, according to reports and research.”

Toleva, an interventional cardiologist at St. Boniface Hospital, sees a lot of women with heart disease.

“I have a specific interest to conditions specific to women, and I want to help patients by being able to diagnose them properly,” Toleva said. “My specialty is interventional cardiology, and it’s a very high stress and very demanding specialty.”

When Toleva is on call and an individual has a heart attack, she has a short window of time to get to the hospital to help treat the patient.

Ratz said it’s important to note that one of the diseases that Toleva deals with — spontaneous coronary artery dissection (SCAD) — mainly affects women.

“Ninety-five per cent of the cases involve women,” she said. “A very small amount of men will get a diagnosis.”

According to www.mayoclinic.org, SCAD is an uncommon emergency condition that occurs when a tear forms in one of the blood vessels in the heart, and it can slow or block blood flow to the heart, causing a heart attack, abnormalities in heart rhythm, or sudden death. As well, most people who develop SCAD are often healthy, and many don’t have risk factors for heart disease, such as high blood pressure and diabetes.

In terms of the events on Feb. 13, the starting point for participants will be to wear red, or something accented with the colour.

“The alliance is asking everyone to wear red in any way, shape or form, and take to social media, as well, and share their heart story and tweet their support.”

In Winnipeg, there will be five initiatives that day, and the first three will be at various locations in St. Boniface Hospital. These include a Wear Red Canada information booth from 11 a.m. to noon; a women’s heart health awareness talk, facilitated by Toleva and guests, between noon and 1 p.m.; and an event called Art for the Soul featuring Winnipeg artist Melva Widdicombe from 1:30 and 4 p.m. Then, at 7 p.m. at Winnipeg Art Gallery, there will be an event featuring renowned pianist Tony Zhou. Tickets are available at www.eventbrite.com, and are $30.     

Ratz, 50, has become a passionate advocate for the cause in the last several years. She was diagnosed with heart failure at 47, which is connected to having chemotherapy-induced cardiomyopathy, a disease of the heart muscle. She also had non-Hodgkin lymphoma when she was 24.  

Go online at www.wearredcanada-mb.com for more information, or call Ratz at 204-509-9600.