Saving 100 Lives Campaign
Because together we can, and collectively we can’t afford not to. DonateFor EmployersLet’s Fight Cardiovascular Disease… Together
Cardiovascular disease is the World’s biggest killer, representing 32% of all deaths Worldwide and claiming more than 20 million lives each year. That’s more than cancer, chronic respiratory disease and diabetes combined.
In Cayman, the picture, and the pattern, is repeated. We have over 300 deaths annually in Cayman, making around 100 of those attributable to CVD. The tragedy is that many of those are preventable. So, let’s do just that.
Join with us as we implement our Saving 100 Lives Campaign, because together we can, and collectively we cannot afford not to.
Please Donate
Even $25 helps pay for screening, or raising awareness of symptoms. Every little helps, and the funds from your donation could just be the ones saving a life.
Employers
Please join our Heart Healthy Employers Programme and help transform heart health from within. There’s so much to gain, including the gratitude of your own teams.
Contact an************@*******************on.ky to sign up and get your workplace onto the Heart Healthy Employers Index.
Why This Matters Deeply to the Cayman Islands
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is not just another illness – it is humanity’s single biggest killer. According to the World Health Organization, CVD causes 20.5 million deaths every year, accounting for almost a third of all deaths worldwide. Every one of us knows someone who has been affected by CVD. In Cayman, that’s approach 100 lives every year and it often affects those least enabled to tackle it without support.
The biggest killer - cancer or heart disease?
Cardiovascular disease kills more people than all cancers combined. An unnecessary death from anything is tragic, but that many from a single collection of diseases demands it receives more attention from us all.
CVD versus diabetes
Well, you can combine all cancers and diabetes together and CVD still has a strong lead. The good news is that by tackling CVD, we will also be tackling diabetes too, a risk factor for CVD.
Early and often so sudden
CVD claims lives far earlier than many other diseases, leaving families and communities devastated. If the subtle signs are ignored, sometimes the alert comes in the form of a heart attack or stroke, with devastating, even if not always fatal, consequences to the individuals themselves and the loved ones around them.
The magnitude of Cayman's challenge
We have a challenge with unique characteristics, and it is going to take us all to change that picture… together.
- 70% of our population is overweight or obese.
- 27% has raised blood pressure.
- 32% has or is on treatment for raised cholesterol.
- Too few have access to primary prevention services.
The scale of the problem is clear. But so too is the opportunity, because CVD is largely preventable. With the right education, early detection, and timely action, lives can be saved.
Our Mission
Saving 100 Lives is Cayman Heart Foundation’s flagship campaign, designed to shift the odds back in our favour. It goes beyond awareness into practical, life-changing action. By empowering individuals to take charge of their health, by ensuring workplaces become part of the solution, and by reaching the most vulnerable in our community, we can prevent deaths and save lives.
Understanding Risk Factors, Signs & Symptoms
The first step in saving lives is helping people recognise the danger signs. Most of us underestimate our own risk until it is too late.
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Risk factors: obesity, hypertension, diabetes, smoking, inactivity, stress.
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Early warning signs: shortness of breath, unexplained fatigue, chest tightness, or a mismatch between perceived fitness and effort.
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Acute signs: sudden chest pain, dizziness, or collapse demand immediate action.
Knowledge empowers people to act sooner, often the difference between life and death. But knowing the words and understanding them are two different challenges, ones that we aim to tackle.
Screening & Know Your Numbers
Engagement in one’s own health is essential, and screening makes this possible. When people know their blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and body composition, they can act on it. As part of Saving 100 Lives, we’ll be organising:
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Community screening events provide affordable, accessible checks.
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Public campaigns encourage everyone to “know your numbers.”
Early identification allows treatment long before crisis strikes. Screening shifts heart health from hidden risk to visible, actionable knowledge.
War on Weight
Obesity is the single biggest driver of heart disease and diabetes in Cayman. Tackling it is essential to saving lives.
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Practical guides and nutritional education for families.
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Workshops on food choices and cooking for heart health.
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Campaigns to encourage movement and reduce sedentary habits.
The War on Weight is not about appearance, it is about tackling the root causes of illness and giving people the tools to live longer, healthier lives. This programme will provide both the information and the practical interventions to declare war on weight.
Heart Healthy Employers Campaign
Workplaces are where many Caymanians and expats spend most of their waking hours and some of our most sedentary ones too. They can be part of the problem, or part of the solution. The Heart Healthy Employers programme transforms companies into engines of wellbeing and heart security. As a pillar of Saving 100 Lives and as a separate campaign in its own right, we’ll be partnering with organisations.
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CPR and AED training, saving lives inside and outside the workplace.
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Know Your Numbers screening and then a challenge to shift them.
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Onsite education & co-branded digital learning programmes.
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Recognition as a Heart Healthy Employer and inclusion on our Heart Healthy Employer Index.
Let’s show the community and our employees just how important this issue is, and thus how much we care. We can make a huge difference.
How Your Support Helps
Every dollar makes a direct difference.
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$25 provides community screening.
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$100 funds educational materials for schools and families.
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$250 supports a wellness workshop.
Together, these actions are how we will save 100 lives, and many more beyond.
Employers
Employers, you represent so many of the population.
- Healthier employees lead to healthier communities.
- CPR-trained employees are life-savers, in and out of the workplace.
- Your leadership sends a message to all.
Contact an************@*******************on.ky to sign up and get your workplace onto the Heart Healthy Employers Index.
Measuring Our Impact
We believe in accountability and we want to demonstrate to you how your efforts are Saving 100 Lives. Success will be measured by:
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The number of screenings delivered.
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The reach of our education campaigns.
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The employers who join and sustain the movement.
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Long-term improvements in health data.
Our pledge is simple: every dollar raised is tied to action that helps prevent deaths and save lives.