Stroke continues to represent a major public health challenge, due to its impact on mortality, disability and the quality of life of individuals and families. Celebrating National Stroke Patient Day is therefore an opportunity to reinforce the importance of prevention, timely recognition of warning signs and access to appropriate healthcare throughout the care pathway.
Physiotherapy plays an important role in this context, starting with health promotion and prevention. Through the promotion of physical activity, health education and intervention in modifiable risk factors, physiotherapists contribute to reducing the risk of cerebrovascular disease and improving the health literacy of the population.
After a stroke, physiotherapy intervention is decisive for recovery of mobility, functionality and autonomy, It also helps to reduce complications and improve quality of life. For this intervention to produce the best results, it must be started early, be tailored to each person's needs and be part of an articulated response between levels of healthcare.
Physiotherapy intervention is not limited to the recovery of isolated bodily functions. Its aim is to support the person to move safely again, to carry out everyday activities, to regain independence and to resume family, social and professional participation, whenever possible. Talking about stroke is therefore also talking about life after the event and the need to guarantee equal access to healthcare.
On this day, created at the proposal of the Portuguese Stroke Society (SPAVC), the Portuguese Order of Physiotherapists reaffirms the importance of health policies that put the prevention, functional recovery and participation at the centre of health responses. Strengthening access to physiotherapy throughout the various stages of the disease means investing in better health outcomes, less disability and a better quality of life for people affected by stroke.