Today is National Grief Awareness Day, a day dedicated to raising awareness of the myriad ways in which individuals cope with loss. It offers resources to those going through personal losses and reminds us to support people we know who are grieving.

World Breastfeeding Week is celebrated every year from August 1st to the 7th to encourage breastfeeding and improve the health of babies around the world. It commemorates the Innocenti Declaration signed in August 1990 by government policymakers, WHO, UNICEF, and other organizations to protect, promote and support breastfeeding. Since 2016, WBW is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Today is World Lung Cancer Day, providing an opportunity to raise awareness about the risk factors and patients’ outcomes of this deadly and debilitating disease and review the prevention measures and treatment options that help reduce the global burden. And since severe respiratory symptoms mark Covid-19, lung cancer is an aggravating factor for the virus.

World Hepatitis Day (WHD) is recognized every July 28th, the birth date of Dr. Baruch Blumberg, who discovered the hepatitis B virus in 1967, and developed the first vaccine in 1969. These achievements led up to Dr. Blumberg winning the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1976.

July is National Cord Blood Awareness Month! Celebrate by spreading awareness about cord blood and its benefits. Cord blood is the term used for the blood collected from the umbilical cord and placenta (afterbirth) when a healthy baby is born.

Today is World Vitiligo Day, with its first observance in 2011 and has since become an annual, global event. The campaign was born from the determination of non-profit organizations VR Foundation (USA) and VITSAF (Nigeria) and their supporters across the world to bring this “forgotten” disease into the public eye and to shine a light on challenges faced by those suffering from vitiligo.

Today, the United States celebrates National Hydration Day. Proper hydration is vital to living a healthy life, but it is often overlooked. It is easy to forget to carry a water bottle on a hot day outside, but skipping out on H2O can lead to major health risks.

World Sickle Cell Day is a United Nations recognized day to raise sickle cell awareness nationally and internationally. On December 22, 2008, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution that acknowledges sickle cell disease as a public health problem and “one of the world’s foremost genetic diseases.”

Every year, organizations from across the globe celebrate Autistic Pride Day on June 18 with various events. This day aims to raise awareness amongst those not on the autistic spectrum disorder, so they do not see autistic people as requiring treatment but as unique individuals.

The 44th annual National Nursing Assistants’ Week provides a timely opportunity to foster and showcase the beautiful things that can happen for residents and workers when we join together in planning this special Week, “Nursing Assistants: Creating a Community of Caring.”