World Stroke Day 2021 focuses on the Precious Time campaign which aims to raise awareness about stroke symptoms and the benefits of acting FAST (Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulty and Timely emergency service) to identify a stroke and access emergency medical care. When somebody has a stroke, every second that goes by is crucial; as brain tissue and millions of neurons begin to fade away, time could not be more precious.
Stroke is the leading cause of disability worldwide and the second leading cause of death. More than 13.7 million people are estimated to have their first stroke this year, and 5.5 million succumb to stroke every year. It contributes to lost disability-adjusted life years (DALYs) and poses a significant barrier to sustainable social and economic growth.
Stroke disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries, where approximately 70% of strokes occur. Sri Lanka has one of the highest age-standardized stroke mortality and stroke mortality-to-incidence ratios globally, with a reported crude stroke prevalence of 10.4 per 1,000 adults in 2015.
Stroke care services are still evolving and fragmented; therefore, WHO is committed to supporting countries to prevent, treat and manage stroke and to increase access to rehabilitative care.
Continued implementation of a multi-sectoral action plan is an essential component of prevention and control of non-communicable diseases. Efforts are being taken to expand stroke care services at the primary level, and Sri Lanka is a focus country in the WHO South-East Asia Region multi-country initiative to support stroke care improvement. The programme supports countries, including Sri Lanka, to strengthen stroke management and referrals through capacity building and training for multidisciplinary teams.
Against this backdrop, the NCD Unit of the Ministry of Health, the National Stroke Association of Sri Lanka and WHO Sri Lanka are organizing two webinars, one in Sinhala and one in Tamil, to raise public awareness of the signs of stroke and the importance of saving precious time.
For information on how to identify a stroke and help the person access emergency medical care, please refer to the videos below.
The WHO South-East Asia Regional Director’s remarks on World Stroke Day 2021 can be read here.