Prevention and care
Know your risk. Act early. Recover well.
Stroke and hypertension are largely preventable and manageable. A KEMRI study at Kenyatta National Hospital and Moi Teaching and Referral Hospital found that about 80% of strokes were attributed to complications of high blood pressure. Even when a stroke happens, the outcome depends on how quickly the person reaches care.
Hypertension and stroke prevention
Small habits, big protection.
Most strokes can be prevented. The single biggest lever is keeping blood pressure in a healthy range.
- 01Check your blood pressure regularly
High blood pressure usually has no symptoms. Have it checked at least once a year, and as often as your health worker advises if it has ever been raised. Community screening days at churches, workplaces and county events count.
- 02Know your numbers
If the top number is 140 or higher, or the bottom number is 90 or higher, ask a health worker what to do next. Write your readings down so you can see how they change.
- 03Cut salt, keep moving
Cook at home where you can, use less salt and fewer processed foods, eat more fruit and vegetables, and aim for at least 30 minutes of activity on most days. Walking counts.
- 04Take medicines as prescribed
If you have been given blood-pressure or diabetes medicine, take it every day, even when you feel well. Stopping once you feel fine is a common reason blood pressure climbs again.
- 05Limit alcohol, avoid tobacco
Alcohol raises blood pressure and tobacco damages blood vessels. Cutting down or stopping lowers your stroke risk within months.
- 06Look after stress and sleep
Long-term stress and poor sleep push blood pressure up. Rest, community, faith and honest conversation about what weighs on you are part of good health.
Recognise a stroke
Think F.A.S.T. Act faster.
If any one of these signs appears suddenly, seek emergency medical help immediately. Treatment works best in the first few hours, so note the time the symptoms began.
Ask them to smile. Does one side droop?
Can they raise both arms? Does one drift down?
Is their speech slurred, strange or hard to understand?
Get emergency medical help immediately and note the time.
After a stroke
Recovery is a journey worth staying with.
Many survivors regain a great deal with the right rehabilitation, equipment and family support. Progress is often slow and uneven. That is normal, not failure.
- AStart rehabilitation as early as it is safe
Physiotherapy, speech therapy and occupational therapy work best in the first months after a stroke, but useful gains continue for years.
- BSupport the caregiver too
Caregivers carry a heavy, often invisible load. Peer groups, rest and simple practical training reduce burnout and improve the survivor's recovery.
- CPrevent a second stroke
Control blood pressure, take prescribed medicines, keep a healthy weight and avoid tobacco. The risk of another stroke is highest in the first year, and much of it can be prevented.
- DAsk about disability assessment
Survivors living with disability may qualify for support and privileges once assessed. SaHA can help members through the process.
Members' voices
What needs to be done to ease the burden.
Priorities raised by SaHA members and set out in the Association's plans. The list grows as members add their voice.
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Prevention
Awareness campaigns in every county
With county governments and employers, extended to schools and colleges.
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Access to care
Stroke treated as a medical emergency
Timely attention, a clear discharge plan and rehabilitation for every stroke patient.
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Access to care
Disability assessment for survivors
So members can reach the interventions and privileges available to them.
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Rehabilitation
Affordable medicines and assistive devices
Through identified partners, with subsidised rehabilitation for members.
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Policy
Stroke and hypertension friendly policy
From both government and the private sector.
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Research
A data bank of people living with stroke and hypertension
Built through member registration, to guide services and advocacy.
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Research
Evidence-based research on stroke and hypertension
Supported and carried out with partners.
Partner insights
Themes from the 2026 Coalition for Access to NCD Medicines and Products annual meeting.
SaHA joined member organisations, country representatives and partners in Nairobi. These are the priorities that emerged, in our own words. The Coalition's own reports remain the primary source.
- 1Country leadership and ownership
Countries reported progress on their HLM4 commitments and shared results from supply chain and financing reviews. Political will and country ownership must sit at the centre if progress is to hold. NCDs need to become a budget priority, and people should know their NCD status.
- 2Financing and supply chains are one problem
Money and medicines cannot be planned separately. Financing has to reach the last mile as medicine on the shelf. Data gaps, long procurement lead times and thin workforces keep getting in the way.
- 3Regional collaboration
Africa CDC, ECSA-HC and the EAC are working on pooled procurement, regulatory harmonisation and local manufacturing. The Africa CDC pooled procurement mechanism (APPM) is expected to play a major role in market shaping and continental supply security.
- 4Integration into primary health care
Separate NCD programmes fragment care. Building NCD services into primary health care prevents, diagnoses and manages conditions earlier and at lower cost. Uganda and Tanzania were highlighted as leaders, and HIV and malaria programmes carry lessons worth borrowing.
Measure of success is not based on commitments... it is when people living with NCDs are able to live with dignity.
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.