Know your risk. Act early. Recover well.

• 01
  Check your blood pressure regularly

  Aim for at least once a year if you have never been told it is high, and as often as your clinician advises if it has ever been raised. Community screening days at churches, workplaces and county events count.

• 02
  Cut salt, keep moving

  Cook at home where you can. Reduce salt and processed foods, eat more fruit and vegetables, and aim for at least 30 minutes of activity most days — walking counts.

• 03
  Take medicines as prescribed

  If you have been prescribed blood-pressure or diabetes medicines, take them every day even when you feel well. Stopping when you feel fine is one of the most common causes of stroke we see.

• 04
  Limit alcohol, avoid tobacco

  Alcohol raises blood pressure. Tobacco damages blood vessels. Reducing or stopping either lowers your stroke risk within months.

• 05
  Manage stress and sleep

  Chronic stress and poor sleep push blood pressure up. Prayer, community, rest and honest conversation about what is heavy on you are health interventions, not extras.

• A
  Start rehabilitation as early as it is safe

  Physiotherapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy are most effective in the first months, but useful gains continue for years.

• B
  Support the caregiver too

  Caregivers carry an invisible load. Peer groups, respite and simple practical training reduce burn-out and improve the survivor’s outcome.

• C
  Prevent a second stroke

  Blood-pressure control, prescribed medicines, healthy weight and no tobacco. The risk of a second stroke is highest in the first year — and largely preventable.

• 1
  Country leadership and ownership

  Countries reported real progress against their HLM4 commitments and shared results from supply-chain and financing reviews. The theme was consistent: political will and country ownership have to sit at the centre if progress is to hold. NCDs must become a budget line, and people should know their NCD status the way they know other basic health facts about themselves.

• 2
  Financing and supply chains are one problem

  Money and medicines cannot be planned separately. Financing has to reach the last mile as actual product on the shelf. Data gaps, long procurement lead times and thin workforces keep tripping this up.

• 3
  Regional collaboration

  Africa CDC, ECSA-HC and the EAC are moving on pooled procurement, regulatory harmonisation and local manufacturing. The Africa CDC’s African Pooled Procurement Mechanism (APPM) is expected to play a shaping role for the market and for continental supply security.

• 4
  Integration into primary health care (PHC)

  Standalone NCD programmes fragment care. Building NCD services into PHC prevents, diagnoses and treats hypertension, diabetes and stroke earlier and cheaper. Uganda and Tanzania were highlighted for integrating NCD care into broader platforms; HIV and malaria programmes carry service-delivery and supply-chain lessons worth borrowing.

Attribution: the themes above are paraphrased from the Coalition for Access to NCD Medicines & Products’ 2026 annual meeting materials. SaHA participated as a Kenyan partner. The Coalition’s own reports remain the primary source.

Health information on this page is educational and does not replace professional medical advice. If you or someone with you shows sudden signs of stroke, seek emergency medical help immediately.