Bhubaneswar, Oct 28: IFI Foundation, a member of World Stroke Organization on Friday announced an initiative to help reduce Stroke Mortality in Odisha, Its Executive Director Sidharth Rath said.
Stroke being the major public health challenge worldwide a brainstorm session on awareness, prevention & management of this silent killer was organized with the participation of doctors, public health and policy experts on the eve of the World Stroke Day
Speaking on the occasion ,Rath said the IFI pledges USD 20 thousand as an initial commitment to drive various programs under the foundation which will be extended to other parts of the country in a phased manner”.
He invited UN agencies, Government , CSR bodies and various public health institutions to support the cause.
The awareness campaign titled “Stroke Mukta Jeebana “has been organized for the past two weeks from October 16 to 31 by IFI Foundation, in association with Odisha LIVE and Swasthya Plus Network.
Mayor Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation Sulochana Das said that “the number of cases under NCDs is growing by the day due to lifestyle changes and other reasons.
Stroke ,she said is one among them which is no longer limited to the older population and is affecting the youth also.
She appreciated the role of IFI Foundation and it’s partners for picking up such a timely subject.
RMRC Bhubaneswar, Indian Public Health Association, Public Health Foundation of India (PHFI) and CARE Hospitals, have joined as partners in this health awareness campaign.
As per the World Health Organization, (WHO), around 15 million people are affected by stroke worldwide each year, of which 5 million lose their life.
Similarly, another 5 million patients are suffering from various types of severe physical and mental disabilities.
However, 90 percent of stroke cases can be avoided, say experts. Therefore, mass awareness needs to be created in this direction to control stroke deaths and thousands of cases can be prevented.
World Stroke Day is observed on October 29 every year to raise awareness about the effects of stroke and its prevention.
