Medical students don’t have to wait to finish medical school before they can make a difference in the lives of real people. Ripple Effect, a joint initiative created by Heart to Heart International and Welch Allyn, is a campaign designed to inspire medical students to “change the world” by using their training to help those in greatest need.
To bolster the awareness of the successful program, Welch Allyn is launching a contest from now until November 22, 2013, encouraging medical students to turn to social media to share how they will create their own “ripple effect” of good in their own community or around the world. By simply liking the Ripple Effect page on Facebook and sharing a picture or short video that showcases their “ripple effect”, medical students will automatically be entered to win the opportunity to support a global humanitarian service trip alongside physicians and aid workers from Heart to Heart and volunteers from Welch Allyn.
Under Ripple Effect, Welch Allyn, a leading medical diagnostic device company that specializes in helping clinicians improve patient outcomes, provides up to $125 in credits to Heart to Heart International when students purchase select Welch Allyn diagnostic instruments.1 Heart to Heart, a nonprofit medical aid organization, uses the credits to acquire Welch Allyn devices that will assist with its ongoing aid distribution efforts around the world.
“Welch Allyn is proud to offer a way for medical students to start making a difference in people’s lives long before their first residency,” says David Allyn, director of corporate social responsibility at Welch Allyn. “By simply participating in the Ripple Effect Facebook contest two lucky med students will win a place on a humanitarian service trip to support people in crisis.
Further, every Ripple Effect purchase students make will help us provide equipment that will improve care in places where it is needed most. It will be used on patients who may have never seen a doctor before. It may even save their lives.”
Reliable medical instruments play a critical role in helping physicians make key assessments, which inform diagnosis and effective care for their patients. When physicians are equipped with the proper medical instruments their ability to assess, diagnose, treat and manage a wide variety of illnesses and diseases, and care for more patients, increases. In many places, medical providers do not have access to even basic diagnostic equipment, limiting their ability to provide quality care to patients and communities.
“We’re honored to work with Welch Allyn on the Ripple Effect program as it continues to have a profound effect in resource-poor communities around the world,” said Krystal Barr, interim CEO, Heart to Heart International. “They may not realize it, but medical students are the ones who are really driving Heart to Heart's reach with this effort. By purchasing select Welch Allyn instruments2 they make it possible for Heart to Heart to create broader access to healthcare for individuals in the U.S. and around the globe.”
Welch Allyn donations have enabled Heart to Heart to acquire more than $10 million worth of medical equipment from the company to help clinicians deliver vital patient care in the places that need it most. Welch Allyn has also contributed many hours of volunteer time in the U.S. and abroad.
1-2 Medical students in all accredited MD, DO, PA, NP, ND and DC schools in the 50 United States and District of Columbia are eligible to participate in Ripple Effect. When you purchase one of select diagnostic instruments during your school’s annual organized medical equipment “sale day,” Welch Allyn will provide a designated merchandise credit (see below) to our non-profit partner, Heart to Heart International. Heart to Heart applies these credits toward acquisition of Welch Allyn devices for use in its global humanitarian, disaster relief, and health professional training missions.
When you purchase the following items, Welch Allyn will provide the corresponding merchandise credit to Heart to Heart: One Full-sized 3.5 V Diagnostic Set, $75.00 One Durashock Blood Pressure Gauge, $25.00 One Cardiology-grade (dual-bore) Stethoscope, $25.00 Maximum merchandise credit per student per “sale day:” $125.00 Your school determines the date of its “sale day,” which occurs only once per academic year; Welch Allyn is not responsible for the “sale day” date at any school. ONLY PURCHASES MADE ON THE DESIGNATED “SALE DAY” WILL RESULT IN CREDITS TO HEART TO HEART. Ripple Effect commenced in July 2011 and will continue indefinitely.