5th Annual "Are You O-K+"
Campaign Breaks Engagement Records
WASHINGTON, May 10, 2024
/PRNewswire/ -- The American Association of Kidney Patients (AAKP),
the oldest and largest independent kidney patient consumer
organization in the United States,
announced the overwhelming success of its 2024 "Are You
O-K+" campaign, which marked May
1 (5.1) as National High Potassium Awareness
Day. The 2024 event exceeded all prior engagement records,
reaching a national audience of more than 8 million comprised of
kidney patients, families and care partners, kidney professionals,
and the public.
Since 2020, AAKP has invested in the talent, databases,
targeting technologies, and communications platforms necessary to
simultaneously conduct multiple national patient engagement
campaigns through its Center for Patient Research and Education.
AAKP Executive Director Diana Clynes
stated, "The 5th Annual 'Are You O-K+' campaign recognizing
National High Potassium Awareness Day set a new 24-hour benchmark
for AAKP's capacity to reach millions of Americans through
integrated and targeted traditional grassroots outreach tactics
combined with sophisticated social media and email marketing
platforms. AAKP will leverage the insights we gained as well as
lessons learned from this campaign across our other national and
state- level education and advocacy campaigns throughout 2024."
As a national patient advocacy organization, AAKP defines kidney
disease as both a national healthcare and workforce issue because
its consequences for people include disability, job loss, economic
dependency, and premature death. Over three million U.S. adults
have experienced high potassium (hyperkalemia), and among those,
over 48 percent had chronic kidney disease (CKD) and/or heart
failure. AAKP believes high potassium is a critical health issue
that warrants far greater prioritization from federal government
health officials and the U.S. Congress. High potassium has
devastating impacts and negatively affects overall health, lives,
livelihoods, and economic security. The cost of care when a patient
is impacted by high potassium poses significant costs to the
healthcare system, insurers, including Medicare, and taxpayers.
Kidney patients are at an increased risk for hyperkalemia due to
their decreased kidney function and an inability to excrete excess
nutrients. Among these patients, potassium can accumulate to toxic
levels, leading to serious health issues that may include an
irregular heartbeat, heart attack, temporary paralysis, or
even death. By using the scientific symbol for
potassium, "K+," along with the familiar phrase "Are You
Ok," this campaign is recognizable and empowers those with
kidney diseases to monitor their potassium levels. A potassium
level of 5.1 may be considered a sign of high potassium, making
May 1 (5.1) a crucial date for annual
awareness.
This awareness day was founded by the AAKP to
bring the important topic of high potassium to the forefront of
kidney patients' minds. Since 2020, AAKP has been
educating millions of people
about the risks of hyperkalemia and the
availability of innovative treatments to prevent the most
devastating impact of this condition. For this year's awareness
campaign, AAKP continued to vigorously expand its reach and
educational resources so kidney patients, their medical teams, and
allies across the kidney community could support this national
grassroots movement to continue to mark May
1 (5.1) as National High Potassium Awareness Day. The AAKP
thanks its national patient volunteers for the spectacular use of
their social media networks which led to our most successful
campaign year to date
and extends its appreciation to AstraZeneca
for their continued support of this educational campaign.
"AstraZeneca is proud to continue its collaboration with the
American Association of Kidney Patients on the 5th annual National
High Potassium Awareness Day to help empower patients to take
action on managing potassium levels. It is imperative to equip
patients living with high potassium with the knowledge and
resources necessary to make informed decisions alongside their
provider and improve their overall well-being," said
Jay Sabbah, Executive Director, Marketing, AstraZeneca.
To access more potassium education, visit
https://bit.ly/AAKPHighPotassium and
www.areyouok.org. AAKP's
2024 "Are You O-K+" live event from May 1 is currently available
OnDemand. To learn how to get involved in 2025 campaign efforts,
visit @AreYouOk5Point1 on Facebook, X, and Instagram.
Since 1969, The American Association of Kidney Patients has been
a patient-led organization driving policy discussions on kidney
patient care choice and medical innovation. Over the past decade,
AAKP patient advocates have helped advance lifetime transplant drug
coverage for kidney transplant recipients (2020); the Presidential
Executive Order on Advancing American Kidney Health (2019);
new job protections for living organ donors under the Family
Medical Leave Act (FMLA) via the U.S. Department of Labor (2018);
and Congressional legislation allowing HIV-positive organ
transplants for HIV-positive patients (2013). Follow AAKP on social
media at @kidneypatient on Facebook, @kidneypatients on X, and @kidneypatients on Instagram, and
visit www.aakp.org for more information.
MEDIA CONTACT:
Jennifer
Rate
Director, Communications and Digital Operations
jrate@aakp.org
(813) 400-2394
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SOURCE American Association of Kidney Patients