More than 190 Prince Albert Parkland Health Region staff members, physicians, volunteers and friends danced the day away at Victoria Hospital in September and are now seeking votes to support their video in the Pink Glove Dance video competition.
The video was submitted to a competition to determine the best Pink Glove Dance video. The competition is sponsored by Medline Industries, Inc., manufacturer of the gloves and producer of the original Pink Glove Dance video.
"We did it because we recognized we needed to do something fun, that wasn't mandatory, to bring us all together as a team to appreciate all of our roles in delivering patient care," said Sharon Griffin, director of Acute Care Services.
"It was a plus that it was for a good cause. If we were to win it would be icing on the cake but we already feel like we won just from the great participation that we had."
The health region's video was filmed at Victoria Hospital on Sept. 17. Barry Mihelwicz led the production crew from Big Drum Media, while the dancing was choreographed by Jennifer Maczek. The video follows a breast cancer patient on part of her journey through the health care system.
"Our theme was inspired by the journey that patients diagnosed with breast cancer experience and how we as a health care team from all departments work together to support our patients physically and psychologically,". Griffin said.
As part of the contest, Prince Albert Parkland Health Region's video was posted on www.pinkglovedance.com Oct. 3, along with the videos of the other participants to be viewed by the public. A link to the voting site will also be posted on the region's website (www.princealbertparklandhealth.com). Viewers can then vote on their favourite video (voting requires a Facebook account). The top three winners receive a donation in their name to the breast cancer charity of their choice, with this region choosing the Saskatchewan Cancer Agency. The winners will be announced Oct. 28 on pinkglovedance.com.
The song used in the region's video was Firework by Katy Perry. The artist gave permission to use this song specifically for the Pink Glove Dance competition.
The original Pink Glove Dance video premiered in November 2009 and featured 200 Portland, Ore. hospital workers wearing pink gloves and dancing in support of breast cancer awareness and prevention. Today the video has more than 13 million views on YouTube and has spawned hundreds of pink glove dance videos and breast cancer awareness events across the country. A sequel was produced last October featuring 4,000 healthcare workers and breast cancer survivors throughout North America.
Medline filmed the original Pink Glove Dance video at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center in Portland, Ore., which quickly generated thousands of responses, letters and e-mails from survivors, family and friends. It has entertained and inspired laughter and, for many, it has evoked memories of their own battle with breast cancer or experiences faced by loved ones.
"As a way to extend our breast cancer awareness campaign, we developed a pink glove called Generation Pink," said Andy Mills, president of Medline. "Gloves are also the first point of contact between the health care worker and the patient. And, because the glove is pink, we hoped it would get people talking about breast cancer."
Medline is donating a portion of each sale of the pink gloves to the National Breast Cancer Foundation (NBCF). To date, Medline has donated more than $800,000 to the NBCF to fund mammograms for individuals who cannot afford them.
