Edward Konzolo, secretary of WSO stroke support organization member, Stroke Association of Kenya, was in New York last week at the UN High Level Meeting on NCDs.
Edward says, 'I made myself heard! I talked to ministers of health from Kenya, Rwanda, Denmark and the USA. I even had some time with pharmaceutical representatives.
Read more about the work of the Stroke Association of Kenya here
Edward attended this important meeting as both a person living with an NCD and as a member of a patient stroke support organisation. Edward took the opportunity to highlight his experience of stroke and the work that his organization is doing to reduce the burden of stroke in Kenya. It was a great opportunity for Edward to share the work that the Stroke Association of Kenya does; its strategies for engaging communities through stroke support groups, which are run with very little resource but great commitment from members.
In our meeting we talked about how we can take the NCD agenda and discussions from the village and be heard at the UN. We stressed the importance of universal health care and action that needs to taken by governments.
I
talked about how stroke has affected my life. I lost my job and I was
traumatized by the loss of friends. This was made worse by the lack of medication and rehabilitation . I said that governments should take steps because the disease affects the
productive population. We also need to take action to reduce the stigma and discrimination that people face.
This was a valuable opportunity for me to talk about the reality of stroke in Kenya at such a high level meeting. I return to Kenya motivated to continue the fight against stroke!'
Read more about the work of the Stroke Association of Kenya here
