AKF campaign to help dialysis patients adjust to treatment wins PR award

A campaign designed by the American Kidney Fund (AKF) to help patients adjust to the first month of dialysis has taken first place in the “Specialty Campaign” category of PR Daily’s 2017 Digital PR & Social Media Awards.

The FIRST30 campaign, launched in 2016, uses video, along with web and blog content, social media, and email to help patients newly diagnosed with end-stage renal disease make sense of their “new normal” while transitioning successfully and adhering to a dialysis regimen. A central component of the campaign is to help patients understand, manage and accept their treatment, since dialysis can be hugely disruptive to their lives and requires radical lifestyle adjustments.

The campaign is built around a four-week checklist that breaks down the priority items to consider week-by-week, such as coping with the diagnosis, diet adjustments, understanding dialysis treatment and where to turn with specific questions. A series of videos shares advice from patients and renal professionals in each of the key topic areas. A series of blog posts chronicled one patient’s first month in dialysis, launching an active conversation on AKF’s social media channels.

In its recognition of the FIRST30 campaign, PR Daily cited the accessibility of the checklist, the creative videos, and other online social tools used to engage with a wide audience.

“We’re proud that our FIRST30 campaign has received this recognition from PR Daily,” said Tamara Ruggiero, vice president of communications and marketing for the American Kidney Fund. “This campaign uses all our digital channels to provide easily understood, practical and positive information to patients just starting out on dialysis.”