Sacred Heart Gets “Down” for Breast Cancer Awareness

There were pink wigs, tutus, crazy hats, feather boas and some pretty impressive dance moves. Even Santa flew in for the occasion. Although they weren’t “Dancing in the Street,” they were dancing in the hall, the OR, the lab and even the chapel! The associates, physicians and volunteers at Sacred Heart Hospital on the Emerald Coast have been putting on quite a show for Medline’s Second Annual National Pink Glove Dance Video Competition. Nearly 200 participants have put on pink gloves and danced to "Down" by singer-songwriter Jay Sean for Sacred Heart’s Pink Glove Dance Video.

The national competition was created to help spread the word about breast cancer awareness and the importance of early detection. The original Pink Glove Dance video premiered in November 2009 and featured employees at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Ore., dancing in support of breast cancer awareness and prevention. Today, the video has more than 13.6 million views on YouTube® and has inspired more than 1,000 pink glove dance videos and breast cancer awareness events across the country. Because of the overwhelming response to the original video, a sequel was produced in October 2010 featuring 4,000 healthcare workers and breast cancer survivors throughout North America. This year, Medline is expecting to receive close to 400 submissions from organizations throughout North America, Canada and Puerto Rico.

Beginning Oct. 12, the public can go to www.pinkglovedance.com to view and vote for Sacred Heart’s Pink Glove Dance video. Voting runs through Oct. 26, with three winners announced on Nov. 2. A Facebook account is required in order to register votes. The organization that gets the most votes will receive a $10,000 donation in its name to the breast cancer charity of its choice; second place will receive $5,000 and third place $2,000. If Sacred Heart wins, the donation will be directed to the American Cancer Society’s local Making Strides Against Breast Cancer campaign, which provides access to mammograms for women in need and free information and services for those fighting the disease.