The Irish Heart Foundation’s Stroke Action campaign aims to increase public and political awareness of stroke and the need for improved stroke services.
The Irish Heart Foundation is running this F.A.S.T. campaign to help people to recognise the signs of stroke so that when a stroke happens they can act F.A.S.T. We hope that our campaign will increase awareness of the signs of stroke by at least 50%.
Until now, the lack of public awareness of the warning signs of stroke and the need to treat stroke as a medical emergency has lead to many people dying or being left with severe disabilities.
FAST campaigns in other countries have been hugely successful in increasing people’s awareness of the signs of stroke. In the UK, the campaign run by the Department of Health led to a 55% increase in stroke-related emergency calls.
Ireland is lagging way behind the UK on all aspects of stroke awareness. Research carried out for the Irish Heart Foundation by the Royal College of Physicians shows that:
- Less than 50% of Irish people would ring 999 if they thought they were having a stroke.
- Almost two-thirds cannot name more than one stroke warning sign.
If the Irish Heart Foundation’s F.A.S.T. campaign can replicate the success achieved in the UK, many lives can be saved in Ireland and many more people can be saved from a life of dependency.
Emergency stroke specialist nurse, Susie Doyle.
