Hep B United Philadelphia and Hepatitis B Foundation Announce Winner of "B A Hero" PSA Contest
Submitted by: Furia Rubel Communications
2012-05-11 12:24:37
Philadelphia, PA (OPENPRESS) May 12, 2012 -- Hep B United Philadelphia, a citywide and community-owned education campaign led by the Hepatitis B Foundation to save lives and stop hepatitis B, is pleased to announce that a distinguished panel of judges has identified its 2012 "B A Hero" Public Service Announcement (PSA) Video Contest grand prize winner and runner-up.
The panel of judges included Dr. Nina Ahmad, Ph.D., Chair of Mayor's Commission on Asian American Affairs; Joe Kim, Director of the Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival; Dr. Walter Tsou, M.D., MPH, former Philadelphia Health Commissioner; and Ken Wong, Chair of the Pennsylvania Governor's Advisory Commission on Asian American Affairs. The judges were asked to select a grand prize winner and runner-up from the following PSA video contest finalists: Josh Prasad / Hep B United Philly - Drexel Chapter (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IwyJ9AbQQ54&feature=youtu.be); Isaac Mejia (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=soAfDkPadMI&feature=youtu.be); and Holvin Louie (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9sjH6gjsFEI&feature=youtu.be). Each one of the finalist received a prize of $100 for their 30-second PSAs to raise awareness about hepatitis B.
The judges selected Isaac Mejia as the grand prize winner and Josh Prasad / Hep B United Philly - Drexel Chapter as the runner-up. As the overall contest winner, Mejia will receive an additional $150 and his video, as seen on the Hep B United Philadelphia website (http://hepbunitedphiladelphia.org/psawinner), will be shown at the 2012 Philadelphia Asian American Film Festival as well as Hep B United Philadelphia's annual media event.
"Hepatitis B is a serious infection that affects at least 2 million people in the U.S. It is often known as a silent killer because its symptoms tend to be hidden until it's simply too late," said Chari Cohen, Hepatitis B Foundation Associate Director of Public Health. "We offered the 'B A Hero' contest to engage people in the Philadelphia region, create awareness about hepatitis B and help save lives by prompting people to get tested for this preventable and treatable disease. We were thrilled that we received many strong entries for the contest and are thankful to our finalists for helping us to creatively share our campaign message to save lives and stop hepatitis B."
Video submissions, collected during March and April 2012, were posted on the Hep B United Philadelphia Facebook page, giving Facebook users an opportunity to vote for their favorite videos. To watch the finalists' video submissions, go to http://hepbunitedphiladelphia.org/psawinner.
About Hep B United Philadelphia: Hep B United Philadelphia is a public awareness and education campaign led by the Hepatitis B Foundation to address the growing severity of hepatitis B and liver cancer in the U.S. The primary goals of the Philadelphia campaign include raising the public profile of hepatitis B and liver cancer as an urgent health priority; increasing hepatitis B testing and vaccination rates, particularly among at-risk populations; and involving and mobilizing stakeholders and policy decision-makers to improve access to care for both the prevention and treatment of hepatitis B and liver cancer. To learn more, go to www.hepbunitedphiladelphia.org.
About the Hepatitis B Foundation: The Hepatitis B Foundation is the only national nonprofit organization solely dedicated to finding a cure for hepatitis B and improving the quality of life for those affected worldwide through research, education and patient advocacy. To learn more, go to www.hepb.org, read our blog at http://wp.hepb.org, follow us on Twitter @HepBFoundation, find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/hepbfoundation or call (215) 489-4900.
