Rare Disease Day 2016
Rare Disease Day takes place on the last day of February each year. The main objective of Rare Disease Day is to raise awareness amongst the general public and decision-makers about rare diseases and their impact on patients' lives.
For more information visit our site http://www.rarediseaseday.org
The campaign targets primarily the general public and also seeks to raise awareness amongst policy makers, public authorities, industry representatives, researchers, health professionals and anyone who has a genuine interest in rare diseases.
Since Rare Disease Day was first launched by EURORDIS and its Council of National Alliances in 2008, thousands of events have taken place throughout the world reaching hundreds of thousands of people and resulting in a great deal of media coverage. The Rare Disease Foundation is one of the leaders of such events in Canada, hosting events in several major cities where active Resource Network groups are operating under the umbrella of the Rare Disease Foundation. In 2015, civic proclamations were issued and live events were held in Victoria, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa and Toronto.
The political momentum resulting from Rare Disease Day also serves advocacy purposes. It has notably contributed to the advancement of national plans and policies for rare diseases in a number of countries.