(Atlantic) In January, the American Heart Association launched HeartCorps, a new initiative in conjunction with AmeriCorps and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Cass Health was selected as a host site for HeartCorps and hired Killy Buliche.
Buliche is employed by the American Heart Association as a HeartCorps Service Member and works alongside Cass County Public Health to support the local Pacific Islander community in preventing and managing chronic diseases through education and interventions.
Buliche is originally from the Micronesian island of Lekinoch and has lived in Atlantic for almost 20 years. “I like to help other people in our community and to make them healthy. I like to help. That’s how I am,” said Buliche.
According to the American Heart Association, nearly half of all Americans have high blood pressure. Heart disease is the number one killer worldwide, with strokes ranking second. People in rural areas and under-resourced communities face the highest death rates due to hypertension. The goal of HeartCorps is to help meet the public health needs of local communities by providing support to underserved communities and pathways to good quality public health-related careers.
