Mrs. Chicago educates women on heart health (USA)

From paramedic rigs and lifesaving equipment to tiaras and titles, Danielle Cortes DeVito has done it all with a lifesaving message from the heart. Named Mrs. Chicago 2009, DeVito says it was her 15 years in the emergency medical field - working as a Chicago paramedic and five years at the Cook County Hospital - that opened her eyes to the issue of women and heart disease. "I believe my work with the American Heart Association is important and well worth the effort," says the 35-year-old mother of three and owner/president of Heart Savers & Education, Inc., an approved American Heart Association community training center for cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and first aid. "Heart disease is the largest single cause of death for American women, accounting for one third of all deaths. Yet it is a statistic unfamiliar to most American women" - Daily Herald