ROCHELLE — On Friday, Feb. 7, Rochelle Community Hospital celebrated National Wear Red Day in support of National Heart Month in February with staff members sporting the color red to raise and spread awareness of the leading cause of death in the United States, heart disease. 

RCH staff has also been provided with information and tools this month to help eradicate heart disease and stroke in millions of people all over the nation, RCH Marketing & Public Relations Specialist Kirby Heward said. 

RCH staff received handouts with heart-healthy eating plans, heart health trackers of important numbers such as blood pressure and cholesterol, a heart smart quiz, and a heart-healthy block bingo card to promote heart-safe habits and activities. 

On every Monday in February, RCH will host guided movement sessions for staff including standing/sitting yoga, feel-good stretching and brief meditation. Cafe 900 at RCH will be offering heart-healthy plates Monday-Friday during February. 

“This year we're trying to get more interaction with the community and staff thinking about heart health,” Heward siad. “It's a way to spark their interest in heart wellness. Getting this much support from staff always makes it more exciting. When you see people show up and they're smiling and willing to be in a picture, it just shows that we're in it to win it.”

Heward said she believes National Wear Red Day and activities for the month help with staff engagement and promoting a healthy community at RCH. 

“When people are engaged in extra things with their job, they're more likely to be more engaged with their work,” Heward said. “If we can create things to keep them interested and happy to be here while they're here, we want to do that.” 

Heart services at RCH include its cardiac rehabilitation department, where people can recover from heart incidents or after surgeries. RCH’s cardiac rehab personnel help patients make sure they’re heart healthy and build up their stamina. That same area houses RCH’s HealthWorks Fitness Center, which operates as a gym and offers membership. 

“And we have our physicians here in the Family Healthcare Center and our people in multispecialty,” Heward said. “RCH brings all those facets of health and wellness together, not just people coming here that are sick.”

Cafe 900 has always offered a heart-healthy plate on occasion, but will offer it every single weekday in February for lunch. 

“That's great,” Heward said. “I like to see the different things they come up with for people to try. They've even added in some plant-based options. It helps to open up people's minds and gets them to try different things which can elicit a different lifestyle. That plays into prevention and the health of our community, patients and staff.”