Ultimate Medical Academy Walks 31 Million+ Steps To Raise Awareness for Heart Health
TAMPA, Fla. – March 18, 2021 – Ultimate Medical Academy (UMA) logged more than 31 million steps as part of the UMA Steps Challenge in support of the American Heart Association of Tampa Bay’s Go Red for Women Campaign. UMA wanted to take Heart Month and Go Red to the next level as a healthcare institution – particularly one with a large population of women in its student body and employee base. So, they decided to make it a month of education and activity, including incorporating some friendly competition. Hundreds of UMA team members from across the country tracked their steps for one month to support healthier lifestyles and raise awareness of heart health.
During the month, team members were encouraged to get moving, logging their steps in a pedometer app, in addition to learning about healthy eating from weekly nutritious recipes and getting into the spirit by wearing red during Go Red Spirit Week. Team members could see their progress in real-time within the app and many friendly rivalries emerged as the challenge advanced.
While raising awareness and developing healthy habits is lighthearted, heart health is a serious topic. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in women in the United States. However, women’s heart health has largely been ignored in the past, making many cases preventable.
“I lost my mom in 2011 to heart disease and heart disease has been a challenge for many of my close female family members,” said Alexandra Schaffrath, UMA’s Executive Vice President and Chief Financial and Strategy Officer, who led the Go Red charge for UMA. “Further, at UMA, the majority of our employees and students are female. Seeing the impact of heart health in my own life made me want to drive energy towards the awareness and education campaigns that are the core of the Go Red movement.”
Schaffrath was inspired to spearhead UMA’s efforts to support the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women movement to help educate others about the risks and warning signs of heart disease. She has been a supporter of the AHA for several years and in 2019, she became a member of the Executive Cabinet of the Go Red Campaign for Tampa Bay.
“I am very cognizant of the impact that diet and activity levels have on heart health, so I try to focus my energies and make good decisions that will promote longevity and reduce my and my family’s risk of heart disease,” Schaffrath said.
UMA team members used their creativity and sense of friendly competition to make sure they were maximizing their daily steps. Schaffrath likes to go on hikes and walk her dog to stay active, while other team members scheduled walking meetings, moved exercise equipment into their offices to gain steps in spare moments and some even got together for socially distanced walks.
UMA is a nonprofit healthcare educational institution with a campus in Clearwater, Florida and online students across the country. Healthcare is at the heart of what UMA’s students, team members and employer partners stand for. In general, giving back to the community is part of the culture at UMA.
UMA regularly contributes to a number of causes and was recognized as an honoree for the Tampa Bay Business Journal’s 2020 One Tampa Bay in honor of its philanthropic support in the community.
To learn more about UMA and their commitment to serving the community, visit https://www.ultimatemedical.edu/about/community-outreach/.
About Ultimate Medical Academy: The need for skilled allied healthcare workers in the United States is critical and continues to grow. Ultimate Medical Academy (UMA) is an accredited, nonprofit educational institution that helps to meet that need by equipping and empowering students to do vital work at the heart of healthcare. In addition to offering diploma and associate degree programs, UMA works closely with healthcare companies to connect students directly to job opportunities.
Founded in 1994 and based in Tampa, Florida, UMA offers hands-on learning at its main campus in Clearwater, Florida as well as content-rich, interactive programs through its online campus. The institution supports students through every step of their journey with access to academic support, interview and resume coaching, job search assistance, technical support and more.
UMA has more than 60,000 alumni and 14,000 students nationwide. It also has three individually accredited centers for Continuing Medical Education (CME) that provide ongoing training and professional development opportunities to more than 30,000 physicians, nurses and other medical professionals throughout the U.S. annually.
UMA is accredited by the Accrediting Bureau of Health Education Schools (ABHES). The continuing medical education programs are individually accredited and are not included within the institution’s grant of accreditation from ABHES. Learn more by visiting https://www.ultimatemedical.edu/.
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