Stroke Communications Kit
With the support of public health and health care professionals like you, the Division for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention (DHDSP) is better able to educate the public about the basics of stroke.
These selected messages and tools include information about stroke signs and symptoms, the importance of a F.A.S.T. response during a stroke, and stroke treatment.
Help DHDSP spread stroke awareness by sharing the tools found on these webpages. Non-Hispanic Blacks have the highest rates of stroke mortality in the United States.1 We urge our partners in public health and health care to help DHDSP close the disparities gap.
You can share resources from “Live to the Beat” with patients, friends, and family. Help your communities learn to control blood pressure and manage cholesterol and blood glucose levels. Moving more, eating healthier, managing stress, and actively engaging with health care teams can all help prevent stroke in the long run.
How Do I Use This Toolkit?
- Read and incorporate evidence-based policy tools and guides into your program.
- Link to resources that highlight stroke facts, signs of stroke, and ways to prevent stroke.
- Share messages and graphics with colleagues and individuals in your social networks.
- Use the additional stroke resources (e.g., stroke maps, data, the Stroke Systems of Care Framework) to improve patient care in your state.
Stroke Resources for Individuals and Patients
- Pulse Check: Live to the Beat
Learn how patients and individuals can manage their conditions, move more, eat healthier, stress less, and work with their health care team to help reduce cardiovascular disease (CVD), heart disease, and stroke. - Know the Facts About Stroke [PDF – 162 KB]
Help your audiences learn the risks, signs and symptoms, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of stroke. - Women and Stroke
Women have unique risk factors for stroke. Here is what they can do to reduce their risk. - Men and Stroke
Share what puts men at risk for stroke and what steps they can take to prevent stroke. - Pregnancy and Stroke: Are You at Risk?
This webpage discusses the connection between pregnancy and stroke and what you can do to keep yourself and your baby healthy. - The Many Faces of Stroke: Stroke Survivor Stories
Read these survivor stories to learn how you may be at risk for stroke and what to do if stroke happens.
Stroke Quiz
Can You Spot the Signs and Symptoms of a Stroke?
Share this quiz to test whether your audiences can recognize stroke signs and symptoms.
Spread the Word
Share these social media messages with your followers. Don’t forget to tag @CDCHeart_Stroke in your posts and follow us on social media.
Don’t delay; call 9-1-1 right away if you spot the signs of stroke in yourself or someone else. Here are the 5 symptoms to look for. https://bit.ly/3LdeIQV
Not all women are equally affected by stroke; Black women are more likely to have a stroke than any other racial or ethnic group of women in the U.S. Try these lifestyle changes to lower your risk. https://bit.ly/3HlUymC
Do you know the signs and symptoms of stroke? F.A.S.T. is an easy acronym to help you remember them—and perhaps save a life. https://bit.ly/3LdeIQV
Every minute counts when a stroke happens. Calling 9-1-1 right away can help you or a loved one get the lifesaving treatment needed to reduce the risk of death and serious disability from stroke. Learn more. https://bit.ly/3LjXTnk
Time lost is brain lost. Getting treatment fast can reduce stroke-related brain damage and increase the chances of survival and recovery. Treatments are most effective when stroke is recognized and diagnosed within 3 hours. Learn more. https://bit.ly/3LjXTnk
Stroke is a leading cause of death and serious disability nationwide and around the world—but it doesn’t have to be. Learn how you can prevent and treat stroke with tools from CDC. https://bit.ly/41NJSp9
From the first symptoms of stroke to recovery at home, here’s how the CDC Coverdell Program connects health care professionals across the system of care to save lives and improve care. https://bit.ly/3LAQrpm
A stroke can happen at any age, at any time—just ask these 10 survivors. Read their stories about how stroke changed their lives. https://bit.ly/44dl4IQ
Heart attacks and strokes are still happening. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, they are leading causes of death in the United States. Seek emergency care for heart attack or stroke symptoms. This PSA from Million Hearts and the CDC Foundation explains more. https://bit.ly/3Hib1IE
Don’t delay! Call 9-1-1 right away if you spot the signs of #stroke in yourself or someone else. @CDCHeart_Stroke shares the 5 symptoms to look for. https://bit.ly/3LaAuVo
Not all women are equally affected by #stroke; Black women are more likely to die from a stroke than any other racial or ethnic group of women in the U.S. Try these lifestyle changes to lower your risk. https://bit.ly/3LD8evW
Recognizing the signs and symptoms of a #stroke F.A.S.T. can help save lives. Here’s how. https://bit.ly/3nkGhzE
Every 40 seconds, someone in the U.S. has a #stroke. Learn how you can prevent a stroke or lower your risk of having one with tips from @CDCHeart_Stroke. https://bit.ly/3oSydH3
Learn how the @CDCHeart_Stroke Coverdell Program works to improve access and care for #stroke patients nationwide. https://bit.ly/40OZya6
A #stroke can happen at any age, at any time—just ask these 10 stroke survivors. Read their stories on @CDCHeart_Stroke. https://bit.ly/42b2j6Z
Heart attacks and strokes still happen during the COVID-19 pandemic. This PSA from @MillionHeartsUS and the @CDCFound explains why you should seek emergency care if you experience symptoms. https://bit.ly/3LB34AO
Every minute counts when a stroke happens. Calling 9-1-1 right away can help you or a loved one get the lifesaving treatment needed to reduce the risk of brain damage. Learn more.
Do you know the signs of #stroke? Common symptoms can include dizziness, vision trouble, and severe headache. If a stroke happens, act F.A.S.T. and call 9-1-1 right away.
Raise Awareness for These Health Observances
| Observance | Date | Hashtag |
|---|---|---|
| National Stroke Awareness Month | May 2023 | #StrokeMonth |
| National EMS Week | May 21–27, 2023 | #EMSWeek |
| World Stroke Day | October 29, 2023 | #WorldStrokeDay |
F.A.S.T.
Women and Stroke
Stroke Signs and Symptoms
Emergency Care
Stroke Prevention
Facts About Stroke
Coverdell Program
Emergency Care
Connect with other health care professionals and share the latest in cardiovascular health from the Million Hearts® LinkedIn page.
Follow @CDCHeart_Stroke and @MillionHeartsUS on Twitter to share our stroke tweets directly on your pages.
Share stroke posts and resources directly from Million Hearts® on Facebook.
Sign up for the Million Hearts® e-Update to stay up to date on all the latest Million Hearts® news and activities.
More Stroke Resources for Health Professionals
- “Live to the Beat” Campaign Toolkit
This Million Hearts® and CDC Foundation campaign focuses on empowering Black adults to pursue heart-healthy lifestyles on their own terms—to find what works best individually and consistently—as they live to their own beat. - Best Practices for Heart Disease and Stroke: A Guide to Effective Approaches and Strategies
Find evidence-based strategies for effective and sustainable cardiovascular disease prevention, including controlling risk factors such as hypertension and high cholesterol. - Community-Clinical Linkages Health Equity Guide
Practitioners can use this guide to help incorporate health equity into community-clinical linkages (CCLs). CCLs are an effective approach to preventing and managing chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease. - Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Home Rule State Law Fact Sheet
Policy and public health professionals and researchers can use this content to understand local government challenges around providing lifesaving EMS. - Surveillance and Evaluation Data Resource Guide
Program managers and evaluators can use this at-a-glance compilation of data sources in planning and evaluating programs for preventing heart disease and stroke. - Stroke Systems of Care Framework
Health departments can use the Stroke Systems of Care Framework to explore key steps to establish statewide stroke systems of care and adapt strategies from previously funded programs. - Paul Coverdell National Acute Stroke Program
Through the Coverdell Program, CDC provides funding and support to state health departments to track and measure acute stroke care and improve the quality of care. - Heart Disease and Stroke Maps and Data
Find state-level data and maps to localize your media work. - Stroke Systems of Care: Policy Evidence Assessment Reports (PEARs)
These PEARs assess the best available evidence for seven different policy interventions to improve pre-hospital, hospital, and post-hospital stroke care. - Hypertension Communications Kit
Use these shareable messages and graphics to help your audiences understand what hypertension is and why managing blood pressure is important for reducing the risk of stroke.
Reference
- National Center for Health Statistics. Multiple Cause of Death 2018–2021 on CDC WONDER Database. Accessed February 2, 2023.
