| Healthcare Awareness Observance | Day/Week/Month |
|---|---|
| October | |
| Breast Cancer Awareness Month | Entire Month |
| International Day for Older Persons / World Elders Day | 1st October |
| National Anti-Drug Addiction Day | 2nd October |
| Virus Appreciation Day | 3rd October |
| World Cerebral Palsy Day | First Wednesday of October |
| World Sight Day | 9th October |
| World Mental Health Day | 10th October |
| International Day of Girl Child | 11th October |
| World Arthritis Day | 12th October |
| World Thrombosis Day | 13th October |
| Global Handwashing Day | 15th October |
| World Food Day | 16th October |
| World Trauma Day | 17th October |
| World Osteoporosis Day | 20th October |
| World Iodine Deficiency Day | 21st October |
| World Iodine Deficiency Day | 21st October |
| International Stuttering Awareness Day | 22nd October |
| World Polio Day | 24th October |
| World Obesity Day | 26th October |
| World Stroke Day | 29th October |
| November | |
| Stomach Cancer Awareness Month | Entire Month |
| Prostate Cancer Awareness Month / Prostate Health Month | Entire Month |
| World Pneumonia Day | 12th November |
| World Diabetes Day | 14th November |
| National New Born Care Week | 15th to 21 st November |
| National Epilepsy Day | 17th November |
| World Prematurity Day | 17th November |
| World Pancreatic Cancer Day | 19th November |
| World COPD Day | 19th November |
| International Men’s Day | 19th November |
| World Children’s Day | 20th November |
| World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims | Third Sunday of November |
| World Antimicrobial Awareness Week / World Antibiotics Awareness Week | 18th to 24th November |
| December | |
| Constipation Awareness Month | Entire Month |
| World AIDS Day | 1st December |
| National Pollution Prevention Day | 2nd December |
| International Day of Persons with Disabilities / World Disabled Day | 3rd December |
| International Universal Health Coverage Day | 12th December |
Healthcare Awareness: Building a Healthier World
Health is a universal topic. Everyone, at some point in age, may suffer from a health issue- be it physical or mental. According to a report published by Science Daily in 2015, more than 95% of the world’s population has health problems. But, most people do not even realize it. That is where the role of healthcare awareness comes in. Healthcare Awareness is a general understanding and knowledge about one’s overall health including health needs, vulnerable diseases, preventive and curative measures and healthcare services available.
Now the question arises- there are more diseases in the world than can be counted, so how are people made aware of these health issues? That is where the role of ‘health awareness days’ and ‘Cause-based Marketing’ plays an important part. To revamp, “Cause-based marketing is the process of gracefully blending a cause with your business goals.”
What are healthcare awareness days?
Certain days, weeks or months are designated as healthcare awareness days to increase awareness of major health issues. These days offer great potential for a brand to educate and help people understand the different health issues, their symptoms, preventive and curative measures, available treatments and support. They also allow a brand to mobilize community support for action on various topics or campaigns and help assess the health needs of communities and individuals.
Various healthcare awareness days are observed throughout the world. Various organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO), United Nations (UN) and various governments urge various communities, individuals or organizations to take up causes and actively educate others based on real scientific data. All of these focus on specific health issues or conditions- such as Heart Health, Fertility Awareness, Cancer Awareness, Alzheimer’s, Depression, Infectious Diseases, and Hygiene Awareness- to name a few.
Why are they important?
For the community:
Health is a basic right. It is important that everyone is well-informed and educated to make their healthcare decisions in a learnt and responsible manner. This becomes possible only when every stakeholder involved in making the decision is equally aware and informed with the right, factual information.
Whether it is a vaccination drive, a fight against depression, an anti-tobacco drive or a blood donation camp, every effort towards raising awareness is a step toward creating a healthier world.
For healthcare brands:
As a healthcare brand, it is your responsibility to ensure that your patients (or, your audience) are well-informed and educated about their healthcare needs to make an informed decision. Taking advantage of healthcare awareness days might be an excellent marketing strategy for your healthcare brand. Healthcare Awareness Days give you the window to tell your audience that you care about them. Create worthy campaigns that relate to your cause using the health days.
What are healthcare awareness campaigns?
A healthcare awareness campaign is a consolidation of various public health objectives linked to a common goal of bridging the gap in healthcare received by various communities. These campaigns can be of various types including educational campaigns, fundraising, treatment health camps or an online campaign.
These occasions can be integrated into your marketing efforts as graphics, multi-media links, facts or figures in blog articles, or social media postings to be effective. They often get extensive nationwide and sometimes even worldwide media attention, which you may use to promote your cause and services, while a major global public health issue is highlighted in the limelight.
By supporting healthcare awareness days, you can:
- Communicate dangers to the health to the public.
- Organize health-related events, campaigns, and other activities for the public.
- Share ideas, information, and resources about a certain issue.
For example: If you are a heart hospital, create a “Heart Health” campaign on World Heart Day. Pick up a heart-related topic that your audience will resonate with- explain the importance of a healthy heart, focus on preventive measures for prevalent heart diseases, and stress the curative interventions available for suffering patients. Let your audience know that they are significant to you.
In this article, we present to you a list of healthcare awareness days, months and weeks that are referred nationally and internationally to raise healthcare awareness.
Now, that you have a better understanding of healthcare awareness day, it is time for you to integrate them with your cause-based campaigns. Get started now and create a campaign that will raise awareness about various public health issues.
Mohammed Ilias
Mohammed Ilias, Founder & Brand Strategist at BCC Healthcare, is an international healthcare branding and marketing strategist and an ethical marketer, with a presence in India & UAE. He has authored the Amazon bestseller “Ethical Hospital Branding & Marketing: 15 Proven Strategies”. With a decade of experience in the healthcare industry, he has trained 2000+ doctors on Ethical Marketing and has worked with over 200+ healthcare brands.
