National Women’s Health Week (NWHW) will take place this year May 12-18. A weeklong health observance coordinated by the US Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women’s Health (OWH), NWHW kicks off each year on Mother’s Day. NWHW empowers women over 18 years of age to make their health a priority and encourages them to take the following steps to improve their physical and mental health and lower their risks of certain diseases:
- Visit a doctor or nurse for a well-woman visit (checkup), preventive screenings, and vaccines.
- Get active.
- Eat healthy.
- Pay attention to mental health, including getting enough sleep and managing stress.
- Practice safe behaviors, such as quitting smoking, not texting while driving, and taking steps to protect yourself from sexually transmitted infections.
Some NWHW promotional activities and event ideas that you can use in your clinics:
- Download, print, or share the Your Guide to Breastfeeding with the women you serve.
- Print and share fact sheets from womenshealth.gov that cover important women’s health topics.
- Share social media posts promoting NWHW.
- Invite a local fitness instructor to teach a free yoga or fitness class.
- Host a healthy cooking class.
- Include NWHW messaging in newsletters or email updates.
- Host a giveaway in honor of NWHW. Work with a local business, such as a coffee shop or boutique, to donate a product, gift card, or discount to use as the giveaway item.
- Organize a lunchtime “stroller walk,” where women are invited to bring their babies, meet other moms, and get some exercise.
- Start a friendly competition. Ask women to track their steps, water intake, or other healthy activities.
- Create a National Women’s Health Week bulletin board that invites women to share where they are on their health journey and where they want to go. The board can be titled: National Women’s Health Week: My Health Journey.” Accompany this activity by sharing social media messages through your channels that encourage women to share their health journey stories or their health goals using the #NWHW and #FindYourHealth hashtags.
