Stroke Awareness Resources

Faith Community Nurses,

May is Stroke Awareness Month, but it's important to get the word out about strokes year-round.

Stroke Nurse and Faith Community Nurse Angie Moscho, MSN, RN, has put together some information for stroke awareness for you to use at your church in some way. It includes bulletin and other info to use. I know you have to plan with your church for the timing of what you do for these things and may have staff or Health Committee meetings before doing to plan.

Ideas for stroke awareness:

Below are some ideas on how to get the word out about stroke, bulletin examples and additional printable material to share with the parishioners. Let me know at MoschoA@centracare.com if you have any questions.

  • Creating a health bulletin board.
  • Reinforcing health messages with bulletin inserts.
  • Writing newsletter articles that promote a heart-healthy lifestyle.
  • These articles can reinforce health messages delivered in the sermon. Newsletters can reach a bigger audience because they usually go to all church members, not just those who are there on Sunday.
  • Creating support groups. These groups can encourage members who are working to control their blood pressure or who want to quit smoking. Support groups let members share their victories and provide encouragement to those who want to improve their health.

Bulletin Announcements:

A stroke happens when a clot or broken blood vessel blocks blood from flowing to the brain. Brain damage received during a stroke is sometimes reversible, but often can be permanent.

Cardiovascular disease describes all diseases that affect the heart or blood vessels, including heart attack, stroke, high blood pressure and coronary artery disease. There are risk factors for heart and blood vessel disease that cannot be controlled, like age, race and gender. However, there are many factors that can change, like high cholesterol, smoking, exercise, obesity and high blood pressure. Talk with your doctor about your own risk for heart disease, stroke and heart and blood vessel disease.

To help you decide if someone is having a stroke, use FAST:

F – Face. If a person smiles, does one side of their face droop?

A– Arms. When a person raises both arms, does one arm slouch downward?

S– Speech. When a person repeats a simple phrase, is his or her speech slurred?

T– Time. This is critical for treating a stroke. If you see any signs of stroke, call 911 immediately.

Stroke Resources:

Additional Stroke Links: