Victorians, including those in Hume and Whittlesea are being urged to get a blood pressure check at their local pharmacy next month to help reduce their risk of stroke.
High blood pressure (hypertension) is the biggest modifiable risk factor for stroke, and a quick and blood pressure check is all that it takes to possibly save someone’s life.
Stroke Foundation are currently promoting the importance of blood pressure checks as part of Australia’s Biggest Blood Pressure Check campaign which coincides with World Hypertension Day on May 17.
Stroke Foundation chief executive Sharon McGowan said: “In my first year as CEO of Stroke Foundation, by participating in Australia’s biggest blood pressure check campaign, I discovered that I had high blood pressure. Thanks to our very own awareness campaign, my blood pressure is now controlled but it could have been a very different outcome.”
“If there is one thing that we have learned during the COVID-19 pandemic, it is that people are keen and able to manage their risk of exposure to illness. We want to apply that mindset to stroke prevention. When 80 per cent of all strokes are preventable, why would you not want to know your risk?”
