The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Control Hypertension
With people in the United States struggling to manage their high blood pressure (hypertension), the Call to Action aimed to increase awareness of the condition as a national public health priority and educate key audiences—including state and local governments, public health professionals, academic institutions and researchers, and health care practices, among many others—about actions they can take to help control hypertension.
Challenge: Nearly half of the adults in the United States have hypertension (high blood pressure), and only about 1 in 4 of those people have their hypertension under control. Hypertension is a preventable risk factor for heart disease and stroke.
During a crowded news cycle in late 2020 dominated by COVID-19, CDC turned to Palladian to bring high blood pressure to the forefront of the nation’s public health priorities while maintaining a sensitive balance with the ongoing pandemic and its relationship with cardiovascular disease. Health care and public health professionals, already burdened with an overwhelmed health system, were faced with unprecedented times. These audiences needed easy-to-access, sharable, and actionable messaging that they could immediately deliver to their patients and partners.
Solution: To launch the Call to Action report and its related resources, Palladian worked with the CDC’s Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (DHDSP) and the Office of the Surgeon General (OSG) to develop an integrated media strategy with a focus on earned media. Palladian refined the news hook and pitch angles, ensuring a delicate balance of imparting urgency yet factoring in the larger context of high blood pressure within the current health care landscape.
Palladian prepped the Surgeon General for the launch, including media training, tailored messaging and talking points for individual audiences. We also developed the media advisory and created collateral materials, including sample presentations, plain language graphics for consumers, and shareable resources for physicians. Palladian produced a nationwide satellite media tour with the Surgeon General that successfully broke through the crowded media landscape.
Results: The release of the The Surgeon General's Call to Action to Control Hypertension generated more than 60 million impressions, nearly 6,000 views of the report’s landing page, and more than 2,100 downloads of the report. Earned media generated more than 1,400 placements, including coverage by numerous national, regional, and local media outlets, from Cardiology Today to Univision.
The multi-media roll out strategy succeeded in highlighting the actions patients can take to control of their high blood pressure and strategies health care professionals can take to develop and scale interventions to support patients and communities.