Grow Pink

In 2018, AltaMed began its Grow Pink Breast Cancer Awareness health education campaign. Grow Pink is a multifaceted campaign focused on increasing awareness about breast cancer and encouraging patients to get routine breast cancer screenings. The need for this campaign emerged from data about the disparities in breast cancer survival rates amongst women of color, who happen to make up the majority of our patient population (more than 95%). The Grow Pink campaign demonstrates our dedication to providing equitable health care and embodies our mission of eliminating disparities in health care access and outcomes by providing superior quality health and human services … for Latino, multi-ethnic, and often-overlooked communities in Southern California.
 
The campaign is holistic and focuses on multiple audiences: staff, patients, and community members in and around AltaMed service areas. This approach allows staff, at multiple levels — like direct providers, front office, or outreach workers — to engage in dialogue around breast cancer and routine screenings with patients and community members. As part of the campaign, clinics develop a wall of remembrance where “honor and support” cards are posted during October. This space allows people with cancer, cancer survivors, and their family members to share their experiences and stories.
 
This campaign has grown to include a variety of tactics for patients and community members. Patients receive postcards or other direct mailings with information about breast cancer, including incidence, survival rates, and risk factors. At the clinic level, they receive incentives for scheduling or completing breast cancer screenings. In addition, we have developed an activity booklet that contains both educational and recreational activities focused on breast cancer awareness. Grow Pink messaging is posted across our social media channels. Videos are published on our YouTube channel and across TVs in our clinic lobbies, and links to these videos, infographics, and other materials are shared with patients through text campaigns or the monthly patient newsletter. Through this campaign, we hope to educate patients to make better decisions about their care and provide access to a simple screening that may save their lives.