LAGUNA HILLS, Calif. – Feb. 4, 2022 – In honor of National Wear Red Day, MemorialCare today took a unified stand against women’s heart disease across its Orange County locations – from hospitals to primary care offices.
In South County, Saddleback Medical Center employees took National Wear Red Day to heart Friday, Feb. 4 by forming a giant, “human heart” to raise awareness of the No. 1 killer of American women — heart disease.
MemorialCare employees at Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley and at primary care offices throughout Orange County, also dressed in red to take a stand against heart disease and show their support for women suffering from heart disease.
According to the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), heart disease accounts for one in every five female deaths. Although there has been increased awareness of heart disease, only about half of women (56%) know that heart disease is their number one killer.
“Most often, my patients are male because women don’t tend to talk to their doctors about symptoms, so they present late and are more likely to delay treatment,” said Rachel Hargrove, M.D., cardiothoracic surgeon, medical director, cardiac surgery, MemorialCare Heart & Vascular Institute, Orange Coast Medical Center. “As a woman, I want this to change … That’s why it’s important for women to stay on top of their health and make themselves a priority in the areas of diet, exercise and healthy lifestyle choices. As women, we often can’t put ourselves first, but we need to in these areas so we can be there for others.”
While men show traditional symptoms of heart disease, such as chest pains or heart palpations, women may show additional symptoms, such as fatigue, soreness in arms or shoulders and back pain. Across Orange County, MemorialCare employees are dedicated to raising awareness of heart disease and encouraging women to learn the signs and symptoms.
MemorialCare, acclaimed national leader in value-based care, innovation and health care transformation, includes more than 225 health care locations; leading hospitals—Long Beach Medical Center, Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach, Orange Coast Medical Center in Fountain Valley and Saddleback Medical Center in Laguna Hills; MemorialCare Medical Group, Greater Newport Physicians; MemorialCare Select Health Plan, MemorialCare Research Program; and numerous outpatient health, medical imaging, ambulatory surgery, urgent care, physical therapy, breast health and dialysis centers throughout Southern California. Accolades include Best U.S. Health Systems, Best Places to Work, Newsweek World’s Best Hospitals and Best Maternity Hospitals, Top 50 U.S. Hospitals, Top 50 Cardiovascular Hospitals, 10 Largest Children’s Hospitals, 100 Best Hospitals for Spine and Prostate Surgeries, national 5-Star ratings and Blue Distinction® Center in several clinical categories, “A” Grade for Safety and Quality, Age-Friendly Health System honors, Best of Orange County and Long Beach Hospitals and Medical Groups designation from readers and editors of eight local newspapers, Top Performing Medical Groups, U.S. News & World Report Best Hospitals and/or “high performing” in 41 clinical categories, Magnet recognition for all its hospitals—highest honor for nursing excellence; and much more.