Since 1949, Mental Health America (MHA) and their affiliates have observed May as Mental Health Month. Now, more than ever, it is critical to reduce the stigma around mental health struggles, because that stigma often prevents individuals from seeking help. In 2021, the theme for Mental Health Month is Tools 2 Thrive, and MHA is providing a toolkit with practical information that everyone can use to improve their mental health and increase their resiliency regardless of their personal situation. Go here to download The 2021 Mental Health Month Toolkit.

Registration is now open for the 2021 Virginia Hemophilia Foundation Unite for Bleeding Disorders Walk! Our goal for 2021 is to host an in-person event, following local and state safety guidelines, to ensure a safe, welcoming and fun experience for all! We hope you will join us in person in Midlothian or celebrate virtually by walking with your friends and family in your own neighborhood.

The 3rd National HTC Patient Satisfaction Survey (PSS) is now available. The PSS allows patients and families to report their level of satisfaction with their HTC staff, care, and services in 2020. The link to the survey can be found here.

COVID-19 Cross Cultural Survey. NHF and HFA are collaborating with advocacy organizations in the UK and Germany to assess the impact of COVID-19 in our community. This one time anonymous 8-10-minute survey will help them do this. We hope you support this exciting joint effort by taking part in the survey. The link to the survey can be found here.

We are so proud of the bleeding disorders community! Do you have a high school, college, and/or trade school graduate that you would like to celebrate? Send us an email with a photo and a few words highlighting their accomplishments and future plans so that we can share and celebrate them in our June newsletter! Email heather@vahemophilia.org.

Date/Time: Thursday, May 27th at 7:00 pm

Join us as we chat with Delegate Kathleen Murphy (34th District, Virginia House of Delegates) to learn more about the passage of HB 1995 that created the Rare Disease Advisory Council and its proposed scope of work. Hear more about Del. Murphy’s interest and advocacy for creating the Council AND for her general impressions on the virtual nature of the General Assembly meetings.

Date/Time: Saturday, June 26th at 5:00 pm

We are excited to announce that we have two dynamic speakers lined up for our Annual Meeting this year - Laurie Kelley and Chris Bombardier! They will be joining us to present all of the exciting work that they are a part of at Save One Life!

Date/Time: Sunday, June 27 at 4:00 pm

If you have been to one of our UNITE for Bleeding Disorders Walk Events then you may be familiar with the amazing Jonathan Austin - Juggler, Magician and Entertainer! Come one, come all and be dazzled by Jonathan's spirit-lifting performance and then be prepared to learn one or two magic tricks that you too can show-off to friends and family! We will also spend some time learning more about this years Unite for Bleeding Disorders Walk - don't miss out on this opportunity to give back to your bleeding disorders community!

We are excited to announce that we hope to have our first in-person, outdoor, pop-up camp experiences this summer with Camp Holiday Trails and Hemophilia Association of the Capital Area!

Save the date for these tentative pop-up camp experiences: Saturday, July 31st in the Northern VA Area, Saturday, August 7th in the Tidewater Area, and Saturday, August 14th at Camp Holiday Trails.

We will have more information on these events soon, but in the meantime please feel free to email us at info@vahemophilia.org and/or call 804-740-8643 if you have any questions or concerns. Do know that we continue to monitor local, state, and federal guidelines.