Newswise — Secure Start services and Hollister Incorporated join in the festivities of World Ostomy Day with platinum sponsorship of the WannaWearOne Ostomy AWEARness 5K races in Durham, North Carolina; Kingsport, Tennessee; and Happy Valley, Oregon; on Saturday, Oct. 3.
Race participants will wear ostomy pouches in a show of solidarity with people living with ostomies. Certain diseases of the bowel or urinary tract, including inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), involve removing all or part of the intestine or bladder, which creates a need for an alternate way for feces or urine to leave the body. An opening is surgically created in the abdomen for body wastes to pass through. This surgical procedure is called an ostomy.
“Many people don't understand how ostomies affect patients and their families. World Ostomy Day is a great way to enhance understanding and improve perceptions while celebrating the lives positively impacted by ostomy care. As a result, Secure Start services is proud to lend its support with platinum sponsorship to the WannaWearOne races in Durham, North Carolina; Kingsport, Tennessee; and Happy Valley, Oregon,” explains Joy Boarini, Director Global Clinical Education, Hollister Incorporated.
The United Ostomy Associations of America, Inc. (UOAA), which empowers and advocates for those who have or will undergo ostomy or continent diversion surgery, estimates that more than 750,000 Americans live with an ostomy and more than 130,000 such surgeries will occur in this country each year.
“When managing a chronic illness or huge changes in one’s life after ostomy surgery, attitude plays a big role. Knowing we have allies out there makes a difference in keeping a positive attitude,” says Susan Burns, President UOAA.
Race participants will receive IBD & Ostomy Awareness Ribbons at the WannaWearOne 5K races and local UOAA events. The stylish brown ribbons with signature red crystal, representing ostomy, destigmatize IBD and ostomy surgery.
“You can live life to the fullest without a colon or rectum,” comments Lois Fink who co-created the IBD & Ostomy Awareness Ribbons after her bout with Crohn’s disease. “For the first time in 19 years, I experienced life free of pain. No longer did I have to worry about finding a bathroom or my body betraying me,” she adds.
About Secure Start services:Secure Start services was established 10 years ago as a service brand of Hollister Incorporated to provide ongoing support and resources to people living with ostomies. The service connects individuals, regardless of the product brand they use, with a dedicated Lifetime Service Coordinator who helps trouble-shoot product concerns (such as leakage or skin irritation); find product suppliers; and access education and lifestyle information, including Secure Start services’ new webinar series. For more information on Secure Start services please call 888.808.7456.
About Hollister IncorporatedHollister Incorporated is an independently owned company that develops, manufactures and markets healthcare products and services worldwide. The company manufactures products for ostomy, continence, critical and wound care and develops educational support materials for patients and healthcare professionals. Hollister Incorporated has been serving healthcare professionals, patients and consumers for nearly 95 years and is committed to making life more rewarding and dignified for people who use the company’s products and services. To learn more, visit Hollister.com.
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