Heart disease is the country’s leading cause of death, according to the American Heart Association. And thousands more are impacted by nonfatal cardiac events. Through groundbreaking medical research and community education on heart health and stroke, the AHA is dedicated to changing these numbers.
Workplace health programs are one facet of the AHA’s mission. To optimize and transform the culture of health, the AHA created its CEO Roundtable, a group of more than 35 chief executives from some of America’s largest companies that applies evidence-based health care approaches in the workplace. Tim Wentworth, president and CEO of Express Scripts, is a member. For Wentworth, the decision to participate came down to three major factors: Express Scripts’ role as a health care company, his personal interest in wellness and the impact his involvement could have on St. Louis.
“The community always has had a lot of support for the AHA’s mission, but there is a significant amount of education about lifestyle that is needed,” he says. “The AHA does a great job of giving people the tools to be first responders or caregivers, and that’s important.”
Lifestyle education includes training on lifesaving resuscitation techniques like CPR and emergency cardiovascular care. Recently, Wentworth provided hands-only CPR training for his employees. He was surprised to learn there were things he didn’t know about CPR. “I realized that in an emergency situation, I would have done it wrong,” he says. The experience was eye-opening for others as well. Wentworth says Express Scripts’ COO ordered her own infant CPR mannequin after the training so she could be a first responder for her grandchildren.
The AHA is able to help fund research into CPR classes, life-extending drugs, surgeries and more through its fundraising efforts. The St. Louis Heart Ball raised more than $1 million last year to support its mission. This year’s gala is Feb. 24 at The Chase Park Plaza; Express Scripts is the presenting sponsor, and the legacy sponsor is World Wide Technology. “The Heart Ball really benefits our community,” Wentworth says. “Express Scripts is one of the largest employers in St. Louis, and we thought it was important to work with the AHA, especially since we benefit from the research it helps fund.”
Wentworth also is serving as chair for the Heart Ball, alongside vice chair Ron Kruszewski of Stifel. “I’m following some great leaders who have run this event over the years, and Ron will take over as next year’s chair,” he says. “It’s exciting that the whole community believes so strongly in the AHA.”
Wentworth’s drive to be more involved stems from an understanding of the AHA’s important work. He personally benefits from research funded by the organization and believes its mission of prevention is especially appealing. “Wellness is the most important thing to me,” he says. “The AHA has done a lot of work over the years to help people become better educated about what they can do to be healthy.”
The American Heart Association is dedicated to building healthier lives, free of cardiovascular disease and stroke. Its St. Louis Heart Ball is Feb. 24 at the Chase Park Plaza. Pictured on the cover: Heart Ball chair Tim Wentworth of Express Scripts and vice chair Ron Kruszewski of Stifel. For more information, call 314.692.5625 or visit heart.org.
Cover design by Allie Bronsky
Cover photo by Colin Miller of Strauss Peyton Photography
Pictured at top: Guests at the 2017 St. Louis Heart Ball
Photo courtesy of the American Heart Association
