Stroke prevention outreach program

In South Africa it is estimated that 4.74 million South Africans are suffering from hypertension, making it the most prevalent chronic health condition in the country (Stastistica, 2023). Hypertension, diabetes, and high cholesterol are the three major risk factors for a stroke. According to the Heart and Stroke Foundation (2022) a stroke is one of the leading causes of death and disability in South Africa.

The HSSG believes that knowledge is power and if our beneficiaries and their communities are educated on their risk factors, we can reduce the number of people affected by a stroke thus reducing the burden of disease on the government and healthcare system.

We have further extended this program to include the public and we have started the #knowyournumbers campaign where we offer blood pressure, glucose and body composition testing as well as stroke education at various events and public platforms. In addition, we offer educational talks to various community organisations and various community stakeholders. This strengthens our position in the community as well as improving people’s knowledge with regards to stroke risk factors, chronic diseases of lifestyle and stroke symptom identification. In 2023 we are also looking to expand this project to include outreaches to various underprivileged and under resourced communities in surrounding areas allowing us to empower and educate more communities on their risk factors. This is essential for HSSG to extend our services to be able to reach more stroke survivors in their communities as they do not have the resources available to them to be able to come to our existing community groups.

The programmes require the purchase of blood pressure cuffs and equipment as well as uniforms for the staff and volunteers working on the project to create a brand and identify within the community for the Helderberg Stroke Support Group as well as giving our assistants and volunteers who are working and fundraising a sense of community and team spirit during these events and outreaches. Salary costs for the organisational manager as she is responsible for the implementation of this project.