Get Involved

We're glad to see your interest in raising awareness about the 3rd leading cause of death in the United States. Educating people about COPD requires effort from patient-focused groups and health professionals alike. The support of state, city and county public health agencies, along with professional associations and community organizations and corporations like yours is critical to elevate the national profile of COPD.

You're welcome to join in the effort in any way that suits your capabilities. Whether it's distributing campaign materials at a local event, or joining our Breathe Better Network as an ongoing member, every little bit helps.

If you have an interest in becoming a member of the campaign's Breathe Better Network®—a formalized partnership network—please click here for more information.

Visit our Network in Motion page to see how our current Breathe Better Network members have teamed up with COPD Learn More Breathe Better.

Below are some of the ways you can get involved with NHLBI's COPD Learn More Breathe Better campaign:

• Link to our Web site. One of the easiest ways to support COPD Learn More Breathe Better is to link your Web site to ours. You can create a link by copying the following html script into your web page:
  
  <a href="http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/lung/copd/"><img src="http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/public/lung/copd/images/bn-copd-250x125.gif" alt="Link to COPD Learn More Breathe Better" width="250" height="125" border="0"></a>
• Organize a statewide COPD program. Our Tools for State Outreach provides campaign resources specifically for use in state COPD programs across the United States. If ordered in sufficient quantity, these materials can be customized and localized for your regional use.
• Plan a COPD awareness event. The COPD Learn More Breathe Better Event Planning Resource Kit is full of tools and materials designed to help advocate organizations, patient groups and health care professionals spread the word about COPD. In addition to the fact sheets for patients and those at risk, and the reference card for health providers, the Resource Kit includes a poster to help publicize your event and an educational video.
  
  Click here for additional ideas on planning your event.
• Partner with a hospital or community center to host an information session on COPD. The COPD Learn More Breathe Better Speaker’s Guide includes an adaptable ready-to-use PowerPoint presentation with talking points, script, and tips for making presentations.
• Encourage local media to cover stories on COPD or run our print and radio public service announcements. The COPD Learn More Breathe Better online press kit is a one-stop shop where reporters can find everything they need to develop a story on COPD and the COPD Learn More Breathe Better campaign. Share the link with your local TV, newspaper, and radio health reporters as well as your organization’s newsletter editors. In addition to campaign press releases, we’ve included matte articles and story ideas, bios of patient advocates, print and radio PSAs, and contact information for the NHLBI communications office.