Stroke takes centre stage at a European Parliament event: A call to close the gaps in stroke care across Europe

 What absolute stupidity; survivors WANT 100% RECOVERY NOT 'CARE'! Do your ever actually talk to survivors?

Stroke takes centre stage at a European Parliament event: A call to close the gaps in stroke care across Europe

On Tuesday, stroke took centre stage at a European Parliament event in Brussels, where policymakers, people with lived experience, healthcare professionals, researchers, stroke support organisations and stroke advocates came together to call for urgent action to address lack of stroke research and persistent inequalities in stroke prevention, treatment and long-term care(NOT RECOVERY!) across Europe. 

The recent World Health Organisation ‘Global status report on neurology’ highlights that stroke is the top neurological disorder contributing to health loss globally. Europe faces over 1.1 million strokes each year, causing nearly 460,000 deaths. Nearly 10 million people live with stroke’s long-term effects. The economic burden is immense and is projected to rise to €86 billion by 2040 without urgent reform. Stroke is the second leading cause of death and the leading cause of adult disability in Europe. 

The event, “Closing the Gaps in Stroke care(NOT RECOVERY!): A Call to Action for Europe”, hosted by MEP Kelleher (Ireland) and MEP Jerkovic (Croatia), Stroke Alliance for Europe (SAFE) and the European Stroke Organisation (ESO), highlighted the critical need to act now and embed stroke as a key pillar into the upcoming EU Cardiovascular Health Plan and broader brain health strategies, and to use the Stroke Action Plan for Europe as the framework for this. 

 Oh God, what a fucking waste. You didn't even talk to any of the 10 million yearly survivors, did you? The four points listed are not what survivors want. Survivors want 100% recovery and these problems in stroke needing to be solved.

Ever heard of the Stroke Action Plan? European Stroke Action Plan 2018-2030

“Too many lives are cut short or permanently altered because access to prevention, acute treatment, rehabilitation and long-term support depends on where you live,” said Arlene Wilkie, Director General of SAFE, “With the upcoming publication of the Stroke Action Plan for Europe, we now have a clear roadmap. What we need is EU leadership to help Member States turn this evidence into action.” 

The event featured contributions from Members of the European Parliament – Billy Kelleher (Ireland) and Romana Jerkovic (Croatia), Marianne Takki from DG Sante, Katherine de Bienassis from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), people with lived experience, ESO and SAFE. 

Discussions underscored the urgent need for a coordinated European approach to closing the gaps in stroke care(NOT RECOVERY!), supported by stronger alignment between EU and national health policies across five key areas:  

• Prevention: Systematic screening for hypertension and atrial fibrillation, sharing best practices across Member States. 

• Acute care(NOT RECOVERY!): Expanding access to dedicated stroke units, emergency coordination and life-saving interventions such as thrombolysis and thrombectomy. 

• Rehabilitation: Ensuring early, intensive, multidisciplinary rehabilitation with EU support for scaling up community and outpatient services. 

• Life after stroke: Embedding long-term support, including mental health and reintegration programmes in national frameworks. 

• Research and monitoring: Establishing EU-wide registries, quality indicators and embedding stroke in EU health and research agendas.