Marie Sherlock (Dublin Central, Labour)
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442. To ask the Minister for Health the funding that has been allocated to the national stroke strategy in order that its recommendations are implemented in full; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22172/25]

Marie Sherlock (Dublin Central, Labour)
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443. To ask the Minister for Health the funding that has been made available for the national stroke strategy; what the funding is being used for; the actions being implemented in 2025 as part of the national stroke strategy; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [22173/25]

Jennifer Carroll MacNeill (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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I propose to take Questions Nos. 442 and 443 together.

The HSE National Stroke Strategy 2022-2027 aims to modernise and reform stroke services in line with Sláintecare policy and address the challenges facing Ireland from population ageing and the predicted increase in the total number of strokes right across Europe, including Ireland. The strategy provides a blueprint for investment in stroke services over the five-year period from 2022 to 2027.

This government is fully committed to supporting improvements and advances in stroke services and will build on the €13.5m in funding allocated to the HSE National Stroke Strategy since its publication in 2022. The funding allocated to the National Stroke Strategy to date has enabled significant new developments such as:

• the expansion of the GP Contract to include opportunistic case finding of High Blood Pressure for those with a GMS/GP visit card. This contract is now in place, and the service commenced in Q1 2024. This measure initially applied to over 45-year-olds but has now been expanded to include those 18 years and over.
• Funding was secured to purchase monitoring equipment in 2023 to complement existing services in blood pressure and atrial fibrillation management in 15 sites admitting acute stroke patients.
• the recruitment of 12 posts to support acute stroke units, endovascular thrombectomy centres and the expansion of Early Supported Discharge (ESD) teams in the community from 6 to 11 teams (target is 21 ESD teams nationally).
• funding also contributed towards a public awareness campaign to highlight the signs of stroke, which we know saves lives, and I understand this is on target to launch later this year, in 2025.
• Bespoke projects in secondary prevention and rehabilitation, carried out by the Cork Stroke Support Centre and Croí have also been funded. These align with relevant areas in the strategy as well as providing support to survivors in remote regions of the country.