How to build a one-page action plan for your hospital or clinic

Venous thromboembolism (VTE) is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide, with an estimated 10 million cases occurring each year. Up to 60% of these cases are linked to hospitalization, making VTE one of the most common preventable causes of death in hospitals. Yet standardized risk assessment is still not universal across health systems, leaving gaps in prevention.

World Thrombosis Day, a campaign of the International Society on Thrombosis and Haemostasis (ISTH),  marked every October 13, gives healthcare teams a focused opportunity to close that gap. A successful event does not require a long strategy document. It requires a clear, one-page plan and the right resources to support it. Below is a simple framework nurses, physicians, pharmacists and other care teams can use to plan an event that fits their setting and audience.

Why VTE awareness matters for care teams

Blood clots contribute to roughly one in four deaths globally, and VTE affects patients across every stage of life, from postsurgical patients to pregnant women to people managing cancer. For clinicians, that means VTE risk assessment is not a one-time checklist item. It is an ongoing part of patient safety. World Thrombosis Day events give care teams a chance to reinforce that message internally, whether that means refreshing colleagues on current risk assessment protocols or helping patients recognize the signs of DVT and pulmonary embolism before they become emergencies.

Build your one-page World Thrombosis Day plan

Use these five elements to build an event or activity that fits your team, unit or institution.

• Goal: What does success look like for your team this year? Examples include training all nursing staff on VTE risk assessment tools, or distributing 100 patient fact sheets on October 13.
• Audience: Who are you trying to reach? Patients, healthcare professionals, hospital administrators or your local community may each need a different approach. Identify your audience before choosing an activity so the event speaks directly to their needs.
• Activity: Choose one or two activities from this list of ideas, such as an information table, a poster campaign or a grand rounds presentation. World Thrombosis Day materials, including patient-facing flyers, clinical education posters and social media content, are available to download. The WTD Design Hub also lets teams build a custom poster for their unit or event.
• Timeline: Map out what happens the week before October 13, on the day itself and the week after, so momentum carries past a single day.
• Owner: Assign one person to confirm that materials are downloaded, printed and ready ahead of time.

Resources for healthcare professionals

Care teams looking to go beyond a single event can pair their World Thrombosis Day activity with ongoing VTE prevention education, including risk assessment tools, patient case resources and the latest research on thrombosis and haemostasis. These resources support year-round conversations about blood clot prevention, not just a single day of awareness.

Make VTE prevention part of your team’s culture

A World Thrombosis Day event is most effective when it connects to the daily work of preventing hospital-associated VTE. Start with one clear goal, choose the activity that fits your audience and assign an owner to keep it on track. Small, focused efforts on October 13 can support lasting changes in how a unit or institution approaches blood clot prevention.